Managerial Mayhem
by sarafu-chan
Summary: Wanted! A manageress for Hyoutei's Tennis Club. Applicant? Ito Himawari, an ambitious girl who wants to be anything but normal. What To Expect: Headaches, sore legs, angry fangirls, flying tennis balls, and maybe even… love?
1. The Once and Future Manager

**"Managerial Mayhem"**

**SUMMARY: **Wanted! A manageress for Hyoutei's Tennis Club. Applicant? Ito Himawari, an ambitious girl who wants to be anything but normal. What to expect: Headaches, sore legs, angry fangirls, flying tennis balls, and maybe even… love?

**DISCLAIMER:** The Prince of Tennis was created by Konomi Takeshi. As usual, the characters in the franchise do not belong to me and belong to their respective owner(s). Aside from the characters I create, I do not mean to infringe on any current copyrights on the series. Thank you and have fun reading!

* * *

_The Hyoutei Tennis Club is looking for a student who would be willing to provide some time to focus on tennis management!_

_The team, with more than two hundred members, is inviting anyone interested to apply for the job as the club's manager. Preferably, the Tennis Club is looking for someone competent enough to meet the qualifications and responsibilities associated in being the team's manager. Some of the tasks that the future manager would perform include, but are not limited to, duties and participation in all aspects of tennis management, written reports about the members' progress and food and beverage management._

_Application of résumés would start on Monday. Those excellent few who would meet the criteria would participate in an interview the next day. For more information regarding the applications, please feel free to look for Oshitari Yuushi of Class 3-B or call 090xxxxxxx_

_We are looking forward to recruiting a bright student who would take the open position!_

_- _**The Hyoutei Times, ****Volume 19, Issue 2, page 4**

* * *

**CHAPTER ONE: The Once and Future Manager**

"Nice advertising," a certain Kansai tensai remarked as he pushed his glasses up to the bridge of his nose. "But I do not see the need for my name _and_ cellphone number to be blatantly written."

"Ah, I'm so sorry Oshitari-san!" Ohtori Choutarou bowed his head as he continued his strings of apologies. "I did not mean to type that, but Shishido-san insisted that it'll be better if I gave out a name just in case someone wanted to ask some questions or clear out confusions."

"Is that true?" With a slightly lopsided smile, Oshitari Yuushi turned to the man standing beside Choutarou.

The man in question, Shishido Ryou, shrugged in response and threw a newspaper down the floor. "I thought it was a cool idea. I mean, putting the buchou's name would have more of an impact, but you know what those rabid fangirls would do if they got a hold of his number."

"A difficult point to refute!" laughed Gakuto Mukahi, the tennis team's famed acrobatic tennis player.

"Still," Oshitari fought the urge to rub his temples. "To wake up with more than a hundred messages in your inbox is not a welcoming way to start the day."

"Ah, I should've put Akutagawa-san's name instead!" Choutarou exclaimed. The other boys gave him an amused look as they all proceeded to simultaneously chuckle at Choutarou's sudden remark. "What's so funny?" The oblivious kouhai asked, frowning.

"Nothing," Shishido leaned towards Chotaro with a devilish smile. "It's just one of the craziest ideas you've ever had."

"Senpai-tachi…" Choutaro sighed. With a furtive glance, he turned to Wakashi Hiyoshi for support, but the reticent second year didn't even spare him a glance. As it turned out, Hiyoshi was busy in adjusting the grip tape on his racket with a look of intense concentration.

As for Jirou… Well, as usual, he was innocently frolicking off to dreamland. The Sleeping Beauty of Hyoutei managed a snore before shifting to a more comfortable position on the nearby bench.

"Still, I cannot believe buchou actually agreed to this!" Gakuto commented out of the blue as he placed both of his hands at the back of his head. "I mean, he's the type of person who wants to always be in charge of everything, ya know? He's like a perfectionist that way, always trying to organize things by himself."

Atobe's obsessive-compulsive tendencies were a running joke for the team; they came to the universal agreement that Atobe was most likely anal-retentive even when he was just a wee toddler.

"I know where you are getting at," Oshitari said with a sniff. "But Atobe is only human. And although I think it would be very like him to relish on becoming more personally involved in all of his comings and goings, I do not think that _even_ he can handle the pressure our Senior Year entails."

They all remained silent.

Atobe Keigo had already shown his outstanding leadership skills even before they reached the Upper Division. Despite his egotistical personality, he trained constantly and took immense pride in his capabilities. He's definitely charismatic and task-oriented and that only served to make the members of the team admire him even more. Furthermore, his proclamations of his -and his team's- greatness served as a fuel to the members' fighting spirit.

Still, as capable as Atobe might be, he was certainly not a robot. Ever since he took over both the positions of Student Council president and Tennis Club captain, he'd been so stressed out and high strung, giving his all to put things in order that the effects of trying so hard were starting to show. Atobe's presence in student council meetings were also mandatory and soon it became a frequent sight to see Oshitari head the club's operations everytime their captain's unavailable. It wasn't anything like Junior High.

The members were all worried about their beloved buchou, of course. They knew how hard he pushed himself beyond his limits despite his trying his best not to show his weariness.

"What are you all standing there for?"

That arrogant voice could only belong to the pompous, god-like figure of Hyotei. From behind him, Kabaji Munehiro stood, an ever-present shadow of the king. Speak of the devil.

"Buchou!" The regulars chorused, spinning around to meet their captain.

"Aan? What are all those looks for?" Atobe inquired, his eyebrows raised up.

You've got to hand it to Atobe. Even if he was the one late for their tennis practice because of his other school commitments, he still managed to look like he just came out from a refreshing dip in the pool. It might seem, to those who do not know Atobe truly well, that endless meetings and practices could do nothing to faze him. He was truly in a class of his own.

"Nothing, nothing!" Shishido quickly came to an answer. "We were just discussing about team strategies and… Er. Yeah."

"Well, team strategies or not," Atobe said with that certain air of authority in his voice. "It'll be best if you wake up Jirou and complete one hundred laps around the court _**now**_."

"Hey, we-"

"Are you questioning Ore-sama, Gakuto?" Atobe asked, looking severely displeased. Everyone fell silent immediately, expressions quelled as they stared into his disapproving eyes. If the slaves (or so they unofficially call themselves) could freely voice out their opinions- and damn the consequences!- they would probably say that it must be King Atobe's _time of the month_.

It's a _man-_struation. Such a frightening thought!

For the offender, Gakuto, well _of course_ he knew better than to justify the buchou's question with an answer. He eventually gave a solemn bow and muttered his apologies.

"Very good. Now, although it pains Ore-sama to say it, Ore-sama is needed elsewhere and would have to depart early today," the Hyoutei King announced majestically. He then suppressed a sigh. All of the team members suddenly thought to themselves how they never saw Atobe look _that_ tired, well at least tired enough for the dark circles under his eyes to be taken as proof of the stress he was under. And wait, did he forget to shave? Again?

Forget the refreshing dip in the pool part! Upon closer inpsection, Atobe was actually in an _alarming_ state of mess!

This overwhelming feeling of wanting to do _something _to lighten Atobe's burden was killing them! They needed a manager. Pronto!

Atobe Keigo, unaware of his team's silent vow to do him some good, waved a hand. "Oshitari, please take over from here. Ore-sama needs to arrange all the papers needed for the calculation of expenses for the new tennis equipments. Watch out for the other members too. Ore-sama observed how they were slacking off lately. Naa, Kabaji?"

"Usu."

With a satisfied smirk, he snapped a finger and turned around towards the direction of the Student Council office. The Regulars watched his retreating back and then craned their necks to the only bespectacled man in the group with a look of anticipation.

"What?" Oshitari returned their gazes with an annoyed glare.

Gakuto made his best imitation of a puppy dog pout. "Care to make those laps twenty?"

Oshitari only rolled his eyes.

* * *

"Ne, ne! Have you heard?"

"Ah, Yuki-san, I know what all the fuss is about!"

"What? What are you guys talking about?"

"An open position!"

"Eh?"

"The Tennis Team is looking for –wait for it- a manager!"

"MAJIDE?"

"KYAAAA!"

Ito Himawari secretly gave a sharp exhale. Yuki's floral scented perfume made her a bit nauseated as she regarded the humongous tarpaulin that managed to occupy the entirety of Hyoutei's 30″ x 88″ bulletin board on the entrance of the West Hallway with slight disdain. She didn't really care about the position of the manager of the Hyoutei Tennis Club at all. But why was she here now, faking a smile and squealing like another mindless fangirl?

Sometimes, pretending could be pretty tiring.

"Himawari-chan?"

Himawari tilted her head, her long and slightly wavy raven hair following her movement. "Yes, Yuki-san?"

"Would you like to join us in applying for the job?" Yuki asked excitedly, a certain glint in her eyes.

"Of course Yuki-san! I've been thinking of the same thing!" Himawari replied with a radiant smile. _Opportunities like this are hard to come by; this could be a good chance to be associated with those popular tennis club freaks anyway._

"Ah, thank you so much Himawari-chan!" Yuki clapped her hands happily. "Isn't Himawari-chan the greatest?" She turned to another classmate who was still busy staring at the bulletin board in utter fascination.

"Huh?" With a jolt, the other girl turned to her female companions. Hana gave a sheepish smile and then scratched her head. Luckily, she heard bits of their conversation from a while ago. "Yes, yes. Himawari-chan is a great sport. Really nice. Always smiling!"

"Ano… I'm not as good as you think I am guys…" Himawari then trailed off with an embarrassed smile. _Keep on smiling!_ Himawari inwardly reminded herself when her two friends exchanged curious looks. _Paste that smile on your face as if there would be no quiz in Greek today!_

"Oh gosh, how can I forget?" Yuki exclaimed as if she had telepathy. "We have a vocabulary test in Greek today! I never studied for it. Oh dear…"

"Do not worry, Yuki-san!" Himawari chirped brightly as she patted Yuki's shoulder comfortingly. "I also did not study for Greek. You have an ally in battle, my dear friend!" _Yeah right, I studied my brains out for that quiz last night while downing more than five cups of coffee!_Himawari thought with a snort.

If it weren't for her father who only wanted the best for her, she wouldn't have entered Hyoutei Gakuen's Upper Division. The peak of pressure for a regular student in the Japanese school system was already bad enough as was, so what more if you were attending an internationally recognized escalator school like Hyoutei Gakuen? Prestige was practically Hyoutei's blood. Her school, Himawari thought with a wry smile, prioritized more on ability rather than emotion. For her to keep up, she had to shine on academics.

The girl shuddered.

Himawari never liked academics. She never liked English. She never liked Mathematics. She never liked Philosophy. Calligraphy, by far, had been the most attention-grabbing subject (if you can call it that) for her. The precise twisting of a calligraphy brush and the concentration it required somehow managed to convince Himawari that it wasn't a complete waste of one's time, but it could only do so much as to pique her interest.

Truthfully, she was just a normal student. However, her classmates seemed to think that she was the scholarly kind of girl, deeply rooted in intellectual pursuits. Her teacher in Trigonometry never failed to look proud whenever she would get past ninety percent. Now, take note, anything above seventy percent was already considered a feat for most of the students. They must've developed this reasoning because it was said that their teacher's quizzes were said to be so frightening, they equaled a regular test given in an Ivy League college.

Was there a secret to Himawari's success? Sure. She just devotes every waking moment of her life to studying and reviewing relentlessly, of course in the comfort of her own house. Never would she be caught studying seriously in school!

And all of this for what? Just so people can admire and call her "smart?"

'_I'm not being shallow_,' Himawari reasoned out to herself one night just after she finished her summer home work. '_I simply know how to manage my possibilities.'_

On a related note, Himawari also does not think much of sports. Or any physical activities for the matter. She absolutely hates sweating! Give her a ball and you might as well be writing her name on a Death Note. **(1)** _No, no, no._ Himawari wasn't born for sports. However, all of her classmates found her "clumsiness" endearing and even showed sympathy for her whenever she would casually mention how she would love to become better at tennis- by far the most popular sport in school based on the number of frantic tennis team followers and her own observations.

The idea of work turned Himawari off. Sure, she was always the first one to raise her hand whenever her teacher would ask if someone wanted to become a volunteer for a project, play, charity, and the like. And sure, she always worked overtime even when not needed. Frankly, Himawari could do with none of that stuff! She only did those things because she realized early on that the "teacher's pet" card can bring her more opportunities to show herself. The real Ito Himawari wouldn't want to do somebody else's work anyway.

Pretending and trying to be someone else, that's what she was good at. She was like an actress, but everyday was a stage. She was an illusionist who knew exactly how to make good use of smokes and mirrors. Most of the people she knew were pushovers anyway. Her white lies were harmless so what's the big deal?

Still, to become the manager of the tennis team? Even she knew it would require a lot of acting finesse to look happy while doing that job. That was of course if she would be selected.

She supposed it could be fun. The instant level up in popularity that certainly comes with the job certainly won't hurt. But Atobe Keigo is the captain of that ship and he can be so, well, _Atobe Keigo_!

Oh, how could she ever possibly begin to describe Hyoutei's superstar? Well, maybe the word _perfect_ would do. After all, he never seemed to make do with anything less than perfect.

With a slight tinge of jealousy, Himawari thought of how universally adored her schoolmate was. He rules Hyoutei like, fittingly enough, a king. Aside from being the captain of the Tennis Club in Hyoutei's Upper Division, Atobe is also the Student Council President who consistently places top marks in school. What a force to be reckoned with!

What was that he always says again? Be awed at my presence or something similar to that? Whatever. At least he had a reputation for being a narcissist and a diva. Even the greatest heroes have their own faults after all. An Achilles Heel, if Himawari may be so bold to say it out loud. It's very lovely to know that a much admired character possesses such an undesirable personality trait. How people could overlook all of these, however, was beyond her. **(2)**

"Himawari-chan, are you okay?"

Himawari, who had been spacing out, was snapped out of her reverie. She berated herself for showing such a stupid and dreamy face. Unacceptable! She wanted to be known as the smart and talented girl-next-door, not a comedienne with a penchant for making funny faces!

"Uh, Earth to Himawari?"

"Yes, Hana-san!" This time, an alert Himawari responded in a very pleasant tone. "I was merely pondering on how I could impress the Tennis Club. To tell you the truth," Himawari pretended to look troubled as she dropped her voice. "I am very doubtful of my abilities."

Yuki gave a loud and hearty laugh. "Ha! If they won't take our Himawari-chan, then it would surely mean the end of the world as we know it!"

Hana shot Yuki a dirty look. "Are you saying that I do not have a chance in attaining the position, huh?"

"That's not what I meant!" Yuki said. "Ah, mou! Where are you two going?" Hana dragged a smiling Himawari and walked off, leaving Yuki to chase after her two friends.

* * *

**(1)** Death Note is a popular manga/anime that centers around Light Yagami, a bored student who finds a notebook carelessly lying around. Of course, being the snoopy brat that he is, he picks the notebook to check it out. As it turns out, this notebook has the power to- what else?- cause the death of any human written on it. Light becomes obsessed with killing people and madness ensues. (Riiigghttt….)

**(2)**An Achilles Heel is a person's crucial weak point. It was aptly named for the only part of the body of the Greek hero Achilles which was vulnerable.

**AN:**Finally! My first Prince of Tennis fanfic! And it centers around… an OC? NANI! Haha, but seriously. I tried making Himawari-chan as anti-Sueish as I could. It's actually amusing that such a sarcastic and lazy character's grand ambition is to become a Mary Sue; Himawari longs to become perfect after all. But I guess she has her nice side too. Maybe. Oh, and this is an **AtobeOC** fic. Just so you'll be warned. But the first five chapters or so would be about Himawari trying to fit in with the Hyoutei team. Seigaku _may_also make a cameo appearance. Huh. We'll see…

Oh, and there won't be much too tennis in this story. _

I accept constructive criticism. Flames would be ignored. Hehe! Please review! Thank you!


	2. The Manager is a Bennet

**"Managerial Mayhem"**

**SUMMARY: **Wanted! A manageress for Hyoutei's Tennis Club. Applicant? Ito Himawari, an ambitious girl who wants to be anything but normal. What to expect: Headaches, sore legs, angry fangirls, flying tennis balls, and maybe even love.

**DISCLAIMER:** The Prince of Tennis was created by Konomi Takeshi. As usual, the characters in the franchise do not belong to me and belong to their respective owner(s). Aside from the characters I create, I do not mean to infringe on any current copyrights on the series. Thank you and have fun reading!

* * *

**CHAPTER TWO: The Manager is a Bennet**

Four hundred twenty five.

Four hundred twenty five resumes and Atobe Keigo was already on the verge of banging his head on a nearby wall.

_Honestly._

By now, it had been already been more than a month since his music instructor and former tennis coach Sakaki Taro candidly made the observation that he needed to get a manager. The high school tennis teams in Japan didn't have coaches to aid them anymore, and the selected Captains usually got a capable manager, often female, to make things less troublesome for them**. (1)** However, the idea of someone else managing the team was quite absurd to Atobe and he quickly dismissed the idea aside, even when Sakaki enumerated all the benefits that would come with it.

"_Keigo, stubbornness isn't very becoming at this age," Sakaki murmured tiredly the last time they had been on the phone._

Atobe liked to think of himself as a pretty managing person. After all, he had been groomed since his birth to succeed their family's multimillion dollar business company. Even at an early age, he practiced meticulousness, diligence and control when it came to his work. At a grueling two day summer camp, his own teammates admitted that if they were living in another era, he would have made a rather fine feudal lord.

The Hyoutei King allowed himself a secret smile. He then looked back at the resumes and sighed.

Kabaji had been helpful by giving him a list of the members who were included in his fanclub. Now, it may seem quite judgmental of him, but the truth of the matter was, most girls who were signed up in the "Atobe-sama Fanclub" were actually hopelessly clueless when it came to tennis. Of course they were remarkably useful whenever there was a match. After all, their only role was to yell their lungs out and cheer for him- and by extension, the entire Hyoutei team. But when asked about the basics of tennis, oh how Atobe would need an aspirin everytime he heard such ridiculous answers!

"_Atobe-sama, your serve was really great today."_

"_Why of course."_

"_Too bad you couldn't make a love, huh? Love means the perfect score in tennis right?"_

"…"

It also did not help that everytime he would try to engage with one of the members of his fanclub in a civilized conversation, nine times out of ten, a girl would go swooning or groveling to his feet. Sometimes, someone would even faint.

He knew he was intimidating and of course he knew he was nothing short of amazing. He couldn't blame the girls for being awed at his prowess. But proper conversations with a Hyoutei female seemed like a pointless venture because of such episodes.

As for those others who were not part of the club, they were mostly ordinary students who did not seem quite up to the task. Call Atobe fastidious if you want but if he had to find a manager, he might as well find the best manager there was out there.

Only two people stood out among the applicants, really.

The first person was a third year named Yukimitsu Rui. Rui, the Outdoor Chess Club's current president, was a bookish student who regularly liked to show off his knowledge about everything and anything under the sun. The only student in Hyoutei Gakuen to be showing signs of premature male baldness because of his prominent widow's peak, he is currently ranked number two in the Academic Placements, one spot below Atobe. He's quite a brainiac, no doubt about that.

_However._

(There is always a however, isn't there?)

While Rui was quite smart, he ultimately fails at sports, constantly tripping and falling even if there were no obstacles impeding his way. People usually call Rui a 'self-absorbed obnoxious homosexual.' Now, just to make it clear, Atobe held nothing personal against the liberated few who chose to take the matter of their sexes into their own hands. But he also knew for a fact that Rui had numerous extremely noticeable personality quirks. Rui had been called a 'loony' by the gossiping body of Hyoutei more times than Atobe had been called 'charming,' which was quite a feat, if one would take the time to think about it.

The second person who stood out was another third year named Ito Himawari.

Himawari wasn't anyone really outstanding, but she had a clean record and a reputation for being one of the nicest students around. Basically a Choutarou, only female. He knew that he had seen her before, although his memory was fuzzy about that. She did make it to the Academic Circle of Ten last semester, according to her profile. Atobe could see how she could become desirable for the job.

Atobe had a moment to decide. Obviously, his deranged fangirls and uninteresting schoolmates were out of the running. He could pick either weird Rui or nice girl Himawari.

Was this even a competition?

* * *

One of the nicest facilities of Hyoutei Gakuen was the library.

The architecture and design of the place was definitely luxurious. The warm palette of caramel, cream and beige brought a homey feel to the library. On the ground floor was the main reading room - this is where the bulk of the library's internet access terminals were located, and where wireless internet access was available. This is also where most of the books and documents were found. The books were all neatly arranged on geometrical, expensive-looking cherry wood shelves. On one side of the room, the portraits of the previous school heads could be seen.

The second floor, where the private collection of rare books and works of art were located, was much grander. Three key periods were incorporated in the interior design: the late 1890's, the 1930's, and modern times. From the 1890's come oak paneling and parquet flooring. Touches from the 1930's included the use of lacquered surfaces and rounded forms. Meanwhile, concrete and steel added a contemporary edge. In the more VIP section of the area, there were private reading rooms with matching fireplaces. Too bad that the only people with access to that are teachers and the Student Council officers.

Himawari really liked the library so she would frequently spend her time there. Most of the time, she would study. Sometimes, she would browse through the bookshelves in an effort to look interested in literature. There were also some days when she would hide in the furthermost section of the room, strategically hidden by the largest of bookshelves, and would then sleep comfortably.

The girl stroked her chin.

Tuesday. Today was a Tuesday right? She was half-expecting the tennis club freaks to congratulate her because she would've gotten the position by now. It wasn't just her confidence speaking; frankly, she knew that she was the most qualified one out of the lot.

Himawari let out a happy sigh. Oh, what would she do if one of the tennis club freaks fell in love with her because she was just too darn nice? What if her popularity skyrocketed? Gosh, of course it would! And people would love her, even Atobe would respect her!

Himawari was lost in her own exaggeratedly colorful daydream that she failed to take notice of the presence of a figure in front of her, patiently waiting for her to look up and become aware of him.

"Usu."

"Huh?"

Kabaji Munehiro stood like a statue, looking at her impassively. In her honest opinion, he looked like a freaky gargoyle.

"Kabaji-san, right?" She questioned, though she knew the answer already.

"Usu."

Himawari smothered a snort. Was that the only syllable he could say? "Is there anything you want from me?"

Kabaji nodded and turned on his heel.

The raven haired girl was taken by surprise. Was this the start of a twisted version of _Alice in Wonderland_? **(2)** With great hurry, she took her copy of the Japanese translation of _Pride and Prejudice_ and caught up to Kabaji, who was walking in a pace that was definitely not sedate. **(3)**

They crossed over the room and climbed up the marble staircase that lead towards the second floor. This made everyone present in the library take a glance at them. Himawari was at first afraid; what if the librarian saw her there? She wasn't one of those special people who were granted access. When they approached a small room however, she suddenly had a vague idea of what was up.

'_Ito Himawari, the new manager!'_ She proclaimed giddily inside her head.

The tennis player then stopped and turned to her as if saying in his own little way, '_Here we are!_''

Himawari smiled at Kabaji and turned to face the door with a determined look.

Even though she never went to the second floor of the library before, she knew –and so did everyone in school- that the great Atobe had a study room all to himself located inside. Now, she didn't know if all Student Council presidents really needed one, since there was already the Student Council Conference and Club Room down the East Wing. Come to think of it, the Hyoutei Tennis Club had been also rebuilt when Atobe gained captainship, and she knew for a fact that there was also a room dedicated only to the regular players of the team there.

Is this guy the son of a business tycoon? Or is he secretly mapping out his future as an architect?

The world may never know.

Still, Himawari couldn't help the grin that threatened to form on her face. Who was she to question Atobe's plans for the future anyway? Heck, she won't even be surprised if he was actually aiming for world domination!

"Usu."

Himawari turned to Kabaji. Was he growing weary of waiting for her to come inside? "Patience is a virtue, Kabaji-san," she said unpleasantly as she knocked at the door.

"Come in."

No competition at all!

* * *

The great Atobe-sama's study seemed like the right place for the interview. Or the official confirmation of her position, Himawari hopefully thought. Atobe would wish to be in command, in control, and this would be emphasized in their meeting in his private sanctuary.

"Do have a seat," he politely said.

Himawari smiled and took the offer while she willed herself to look away from the mini Swarovski crystal chandelier that hanged on the ceiling. She sat down on a large leather chair, positioned opposite to his desk. There was a small table with a tray filled with small teacups and assorted sweets beside her.

"Ore-sama is glad to know that you applied for the position," Atobe stated. Himawari noted that he _really_ was extremely handsome, with thick grey hair styled in a rather fashionable manner and eyes so blue you could probably drown in them. He smiled, showing his bright, white teeth. "It is a Tuesday, isn't it?" he suddenly inquired.

"Uhm, yes," the girl looked puzzled. What is it with the day Tuesday anyway? Just a while ago, she was wistfully thinking how she disliked Tuesdays. Was there going to be a badly written book entitled_A Tuesday With Atobe-sama_ that she was destined to author? Hopefully not!

"Well, in any case, Ore-sama wishes to personally hear from you why you applied for the position of the tennis club manager," Atobe stated, his voice with a tone of command. "For formality's sake, of course. No pressure, Ito."

_Ohohoho…!_Himawari decided that she had already won the battle. This was her territory. Over the years, she had mastered the art of deception and lying while keeping an even face. Himawari finds this skill quite useful when she needed to tell white lies. Since she transferred to Hyoutei, she had been playing the role of the "perfect girl" without sweat and had even learned a thing or two about what ticked people off and what pleased them the most.

Anyway, it's not like she was a pathological liar. That's too much. She's more of a… More like a…

Actress.

Yeah. An actress.

Actresses were not liars anyway. They were required to play a part and be so good at their roles that the audience would have no choice but to wholeheartedly believe they were the characters they portrayed. They acted because they wanted to earn a living. Himawari acted because she wanted to earn popularity.

So she started her brilliant speech by first praising Atobe, exalting him to the highest. She then went on to express her deep respect and admiration for the sacred sport of tennis in her most sincere tone. Tennis, she confessed, had always been a beloved sport for her even though she never had the talent for it. Cue a wistful look. She then told him of her vision for the club's future and included all her plans so that the team could one day cinch this year's national championship tournament.

Meanwhile, Atobe had been looking at her with the same excitement he would show when presented with a rock. Sometimes, he would tap his for fingertips together, his hands forming a hollow triangle. Sometimes, he would look at the wall clock in boredom. Himawari was so into her speech that she did not notice that Atobe raised his eyebrows everytime she would utter her love for tennis.

"That is all," Himawari finally said with a ragged breath after more than five minutes of talking about nothing but direction, management and making the Hyoutei Tennis Team great. Unbeknownst to Himawari was the fact that Atobe didn't pay much attention to her speech, but instead focused on using his _Insight_ on _her_.

At first glance, she really was ordinary. Long and slightly wavy raven hair that reached almost the waist. Owl-like eyes which were grey in color. She followed Hyoutei's uniform policies to the letter; she was very neat-looking, especially when compared to the other girls who liked to roll up their sleeves or preferred to use slouchy socks instead of the prescribed regular white knee ones.

_Definitely a Choutarou._

But his ability made him see something else in her, something that made him uneasy. There was something wrong with her, and what it was, he didn't know. He decided to test something out.

"Atobe-san. I'm done," Himawari reminded as Atobe continued to assess her.

The Hyoutei King, who looked truly powerful behind his large mahogany desk, tilted his head very slightly towards her direction. "Anything else you wanted to add?"

Himawari blinked. A rather odd question, but something very simple to answer. "No. Nothing at all, Atobe-san."

"Oh?" He gave an amused chuckle. "None?"

"If there is anything else that I want to share with you, I would gladly say it right now," Himawari answered confidently, a radiant smile on her lips.

This time, Atobe groped for the right words to say. His instinct never failed him after all. "Even if it concerns dishonesty?"

Himawari thought she choked on air when she heard the word _dishonesty_. Without even realizing it, she drank the tea in front of her in one big gulp to recover from the slight shock. As she put down the tea cup on the table, she thought she saw Atobe smirk.

_Right on the money._

"Not very ladylike of you, ne, Ito-san?" It was more of a statement rather than a question. Himawari simmered inside because she knew that Atobe was enjoying this.

"My apologies," she gave another smile, albeit more forced than the last time. "Your assumptions about me just threw me off."

"How rude!" Atobe threw his head back. "Ore-sama does not make assumptions, Ito-san. Ore-sama makes direct accusations."

"So you are accusing me of being a liar then?" She asked, trying to keep her tone as even as possible.

"Ore-sama cannot be faulted if people have their own interpretations of his words."

Frankly, the pompousness level in the air was suffocating her. She wanted to yell at him but instead, she smiled again, "_Maybe _you are correct. But like I said, you don't have any evidence to support your-"

"Ore-sama's _Insight_ cannot be deceived," the Tennis Club buchou simply proclaimed, as if it was an explanation all by itself.

"Interesting," she muttered, briefly curious of this amazing ability called _Insight._ She heard that Atobe used a skill called _Insight_ to analyze an opponent's weakness during a tennis match. She never thought that it could come in handy when dealing with people too. After all, if Atobe's _Insight_ helped him sniff her out, what surprising things can this ability further do? But of course she couldn't lose face. "Do you mind to explain to me how you came to that conclusion, Atobe-san?"

Atobe glanced sharply down at the girl, his blue eyes meeting her grey ones. "You're a contradiction," he told her, his brows furrowed together. "And frankly, you smell of ambition."

The raven haired girl struggled to hold the smile on her face. How did Atobe do that? She drank her tea again and spoke, "Atobe-san, you were merely operating on your instincts. I don't-"

"Now you sound angry," he pointed out.

"I am not," she said, and she was rather pleased with how positively sunny she sounded.

There was something intriguing about her. Was he attracted to her? He doubted it, but he knew that she was like a mystery that he wanted to solve.

"Though Ore-sama frowns upon your… _actions_," Atobe started as he rose from behind his desk. "Ore-sama would also be the first person to admit that he cannot find anyone else competent enough for the position." He managed a sigh. "Sometimes, Ore-sama wonders if truly capable people are decreasing in Hyoutei."

Himawari thinks of something along the same lines too whenever she encounters all those airheaded fans of Atobe.

"You should be grateful because Ore-sama is giving you a chance to prove yourself." With a graceful flick of his hand, he held out a finger in front of her. "One week. Ore-sama will give you a week so that he can determine if you are truly up to the task. A managerial position isn't very easy, Ito-san."

She nodded. "Nobody ever said it was."

Atobe looked at her again. Well, she seemed feisty enough. Even without his _Insight_ he knew that she at least had drive.

"Good. Ore-sama is glad to know that we understand each other on that part." He started to walk back and forth the room. "Ore-sama would also like to make it clear to you right now that he does not like being cheated. Ore-sama does not like it when people lie too. To Ore-sama, it is a grave insult. It only means one thing: that Ore-sama is not deserving enough of the truth."

Himawari nodded again and then longingly glanced at the door. It had never looked so enticing before.

"You still do not have the permission to leave Ore-sama's office," Atobe declared while he sauntered towards her with the slow, deliberate steps of a man who was well familiar with his own power. Himawari, meanwhile, was alarmed that he even recognized her desire to escape from his lecture. Another brilliant use of his _Insight_? She regarded that possibility.

"Starting tomorrow, you are to report to the tennis courts at exactly one in the afternoon. Ore-sama does not tolerate tardiness, Ito-san. If by any chance Ore-sama is not there, you can look for Oshitari. You know him of course, since you are classmates."

The distressed girl sucked in her breath when Atobe leaned forward, their eyes meeting.

"Did you get all of that?"

"Yes," she smiled weakly. "Of course." Smiling had always been an unconscious habit of hers. That was not a lie.

"Now," he also smiled, though his was a smile of smugness. "Do you have anything else to say, Ito-san?"

"Now that you mention it, I feel like I should be straightforward with what I think of you."

"Aan~?" Now it was Atobe's turn to look quite surprised. He was not expecting her to say _that_. Maybe she was made of stronger stuff than he thought. "Why don't you tell it, Ito-san?" Truthfully, he was interested to know what the girl thought of him.

"You," she smiled again, but it was an odd sort of smile, and he couldn't quite tell what it truly meant. "make Mr. Darcy seem only mildly arrogant." **(4)**

Atobe looked at her, confused. But before he could order the girl to explain, she scrambled towards the door and left the room. Alone, Atobe pondered her words, but then he decided later on that tennis paperwork was far more important than a girl's enigmatic declaration.

The pieces connected together just after his dinner. Quite impressed, Atobe thought that maybe, just maybe, there was hope for a proper conversation with a female schoolmate after all.

* * *

**(1)** This is mostly true in public schools in Japan, so I used it as a reference to my story even if Hyoutei is a private school.

**(2)** Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll is a famous story about a little girl who likes going off in crazy adventures instead of going to school and studying.

**(3)** One of Jane Austen's most celebrated novels, Pride and Prejudice tells the love story of a witty and lively woman who becomes courted by a proud and slightly judgmental gentleman.

**(4)** Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, or Mr. Darcy for short, is the main male protagonist of Pride and Prejudice. He is wealthy and highly sought-after, but he is sometimes arrogant and concerned with his social status.

* * *

**AN:**Himawari's really baaaaddd... Poor Kabaji! *sighs* Anyway, here's the second chapter of this story!


	3. The Manager is a Newbie

**"Managerial Mayhem"**

**SUMMARY: **Wanted! A manageress for Hyoutei's Tennis Club. Applicant? Ito Himawari, an ambitious girl who wants to be anything but normal. What to expect: Headaches, sore legs, angry fangirls, flying tennis balls, and maybe even… love?

**DISCLAIMER:** The Prince of Tennis was created by Konomi Takeshi. As usual, the characters in the franchise do not belong to me and belong to their respective owner(s). Aside from the characters I create, I do not mean to infringe on any current copyrights on the series. Thank you and have fun reading!

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE: The Manager is a Newbie**

"An offensive or aggressive baseliner tries to win the point by hitting from the back of the court, attacking with fast balls that the opponent cannot reach or return properly."

Drinks coffee.

"A defensive baseliner, or _counterpuncher_ or _retriever,_ returns every ball and relies on the opponent making mistakes. He has consistent shots, makes few errors of his own while making it difficult for opponents to hit back."

Drinks some more again.

"All-court players have aspects of every tennis style, whether that be aggressive baseliner, defensive counterpuncher or serve-volleyer. All-court players use the best bits from each style and mix it together to create a truly formidable tennis style to play against. In game situations, they have the ability to select an action usually executed by one tennis style."

Stares at the empty Winnie the Pooh mug.

"Ah, my head hurts!" Himawari complained to no one in particular as she closed the book in front of her loudly, her mood foul indeed.

Just yesterday, Himawari found herself completely exposed by one Atobe Keigo during her "supposed-to-be moment of brilliance." It was embarrassing to admit, but he completely saw right through her, and played her like a cat toying with a prey. But for her to realize her dreams of finally becoming the most popular girl in school, she had to take the job. Atobe could just go and… screw a platypus or something!

Her reputation was at stake here! She spent the last three years in Hyoutei Academy building up her name so she could be praised as the perfect student. This was her ultimate chance and wasn't there a saying that the sharpest swords had to be forged in the hottest fires?

Right.

She refused to become a nobody.

The only way for her to make her cherished dream a reality was to make a good impression. She would make sure of it. She'll become the best damn manager there could possibly be and astonish them all. Atobe Keigo would simply adore her, and the other insignificant tennis club freaks would worship the ground her polished school shoes walked on. Her schoolmates would cry whenever they see her. Her teachers would wax poetic whenever they hear about her.

But first, she had to get through and memorize the book _**Tennis: All You Need to Know**_.

All _five inches_ of it.

In only _one night_.

Himawari glared at her Winnie the Pooh mug. It looked… slightly mocking. With its happy, happy smile. With its cheery, cheery decoration. With its obvious disregard for good manners and right conduct as evidenced by Pooh's lack of underwear or anything appropriate to cover his exposed bottom.

_Really mocking_…

She snarled. She _hated_being mocked.

"What are you looking at?"

That night, another mug was sacrificed because of anger management failure.

* * *

"So I heard that you just became the new manager, ah?" A masculine voice floated through the air. **(1)**

Himawari and her friends turned around to find a male student with dark blue hair that complimented his equally blue eyes standing behind them, a somewhat mysterious smile plastered on his face. They were at the middle of a hallway, so his unexplained appearance caught them off guard.

"H-Hi Oshitari-kun…" Hana squeaked, waving a hand happily.

"A pleasant afternoon, Mori-san," Oshitari greeted. He then stunningly ignored the girl's loud sigh of pleasure at being singled out for a greeting. His eyes were focused solely on Himawari. "Ito-san, congratulations. Though to be honest, I never thought you would apply for the position."

"Thank you, Oshitari-san!" Himawari chirped brightly in that annoying high-pitch tone of hers. Himawari had taken a habit of using it whenever she wanted to make an impression. "I hope I can be helpful in your club activities."

The bespectacled man smiled again, but this time, his eyes had a certain ominous glint. It was like he was thinking of some sort of devious scheme.

In a nutshell, Oshitari Yuushi was a third year at Hyoutei Gakuen and was one of the regular members of the Hyoutei tennis team. People all looked up to him as a "tensai" because he was exceptionally good with whatever he did- be it in tennis or in academics. He had no trouble in playing in doubles or singles, and sometimes preferred to play by himself against two players for practice. Everyone in Hyoutei thought of Yuushi as the cool, calm and suave kind of student.

However, Himawari was slightly wary of the bespactacled Kansai. There probably wasn't an idiotic bone in the tensai's body so she might as well be prepared for him just in case he pulls an 'Ore-sama's Insight Is Never Wrong!' act.

"You should do your best," Oshitari friendly advised with a slight shrug. "Atobe is a fastidious person. He would be very hard to please."

"So what should I do to, ah, _please _Atobe-san?"

Oshitari raised an eyebrow. "You're kinda bold today, aren't you, Ito-san? Nn?" **(2)**

"Why of course Oshitari-san! I must be willing to make certain sacrifices if I want to perform to the very best of my abilities!" The girl clasped her hands together and closed her eyes. "With great power comes great responsibility."

Now, the Kansai man looked somehow baffled. "You just quoted something from _Spiderman_, didn't you?"

"Oh."

"Well, in any case, we better get going," Oshitari commented, glancing at his watch. "Maybe Atobe told you this before, but he absolutely hates it when there are latecomers. You could come with me now if you want to, Ito-san." He then smirked.

Needless to say, Oshitari's action prompted Yuki and Hana to giggle shamelessly in response. The newly ordained manager tried her best to ignore them.

"Of course!" Himawari looked at her friends with a slightly apologetic look. "Gomen ne, minna –san! I have a lot of things to attend to. I hope you don't mind."

"We don't mind!" Yuki answered, pushing Himawari towards Oshitari. "Now off you go!"

"Gambatte, Himawari-chan!" Hana added heartily. "FIGHT-O!"

Himawari's friends looked even more excited for Himawari than Himawari herself. Actually, when they all heard the news this morning that their dear Himawari-chan got the spot, they squealed and jumped and did other fangirly things that Himawari thankfully didn't take any part in.

"Ready to go, Ito-san?"The smirk didn't disappear from Oshitari's flawless face.

"Well," Himawari glanced back at Yuki and Hana. "I'll see you later, alright?"

* * *

Himawari would always pass by the tennis courts whenever she would go to her homeroom.

It was nothing that spectacular, but it usually warranted the interest of many. Everytime she would take a look at the supposedly majestic grounds, there would be several sweaty tennis club members practicing here and there with great effort. Others could be seen running laps, while there were those unfortunate few who were forced to become ball retrievers and watch from afar. The talented members, especially the regulars, often played practice matches on the other side of the court. The sight of them playing against each other usually attracted the attention of love-struck fangirls, and more often than not, crowds instantly gathered to check up on their matches.

Personally, Himawari didn't get it. She didn't get why many people liked tennis. It was boring and not even a creative use of one's time. Seriously, hitting a ball repeatedly until the other side can't return it? Where's the fun in that?

"Well, here we are," Oshitari told her as soon as they arrived.

"Thank you, Oshitari-san!" Himawari gave a small bow while the tensai gave another smirk.

"It was no problem," Oshitari briskly replied. His sharp eyes searched the crowd minutely before turning his attention back to the girl beside him. "I need to first change to my tennis outfit. You should immediately go report to Atobe." He swayed his head to where Atobe was located.

When Oshitari turned his back, Himawari didn't bother to hide the rolling of her eyes.

'_And so I am left to fend off the Pompous King by myself__,' _she half-sang inside her head.

The raven haired girl took a deep breath and slowly walked over to where Atobe Keigo was standing. _One, two… One, two… One, two… Hmm! Slightly rhythmic!_ She stopped when she realized that she had already arrived on her destination.

"Hello, Atobe-san!" Himawari greeted with all the sunshine in the world. _Pompous Pilate, that's his name! La lalala!_

"Ito, go inside the clubroom and get the attendance sheet. It is located on Ore-sama's desk's top drawer," Atobe said absentmindedly, paying no heed to her.

"I… Of course," she murmured. "Right away."

The girl obediently went inside the club room while inwardly shaking a fist at the Hyoutei Captain. As expected, what greeted her when she went inside the classroom were lavish furnitures and luxurious decorations. It was not as grand as Atobe's private study, but it still looked more like a business room rather than a tennis clubroom. There was around table of white powder-coated steel table in the middle of the room, with seven chairs accompanying it. Of course, Atobe's desk stood regally on the furthermost section of the room.

Himawari looked for the attendance sheet. Like what Atobe said, it can be found inside his desk's top drawer. The girl secretly congratulated herself for a job well done. Before going out though, she looked at a framed picture of Atobe that was placed on his personal desk.

"Very soon, Pompous King, very soon…" Himawari cackled, knowing fully well that there was no one inside the club room. "I'll make you bow down to me!"

Most of the Regular members were still in the changing room, huddled together. They were all waiting for Oshitari to finish changing and frankly, the long wait was_killing_ them.

"Ito…" Shishido cleared his throat. "Right. I'm sure I heard of her name before."

"Is she pretty?" Gakuto managed to ask, all manners forgotten.

"Gakuto-senpai!" Choutarou looked scandalized. "We shouldn't be talking about Ito-san that way!"

"You know her?" Not that Hiyoshi was interested. Just mildly curious. The Newspaper Club's motto was "Dare to Ask" after all.

Choutarou flushed. "N-Not really…"

Jirou was yawning. Not a good sign.

"I hope she's not some lame weirdo!" Shishido commented.

"Even if she won't be cute," agreed Gakuto.

"Gekokujou," Hiyoshi stated, mostly to himself. All the others did a good job of ignoring him because what he said had no connection with the topic whatsoever.

Jirou's eyes were steadily getting droopy. A really bad sign…

It was at this moment that Oshitari Yuushi chose to step out of the changing room. All the Regulars present in the room (except for Jirou who took the liberty of falling asleep on the floor) turned their eyes to meet him with a slightly expectant look.

"You keep on frequently giving me those looks nowadays," Oshitari observed with a frown.

Choutarou was the only one in the group who looked apologetic. "Ah, so sorry Oshitari-senpai! Shall we go now?"

"I don't see why not," Oshitari replied as they all walked out of the changing room and into the tennis courts. The other members soon noticed them and bowed down in respect. Choutarou looked like the only guy bothered by their gestures.

And then, there she was.

The Regulars all came to a halt when a girl with long raven hair came out from the tennis club room. Eyes fixed on the female newcomer, they watched as she walked towards Atobe to give him the folder she was holding. Now this was an eye catch! It was a rule in their club that no person outside the tennis team could go to the tennis courts whenever there was practice. Atobe made it clear at the start of the school assembly that the tennis grounds were sacred, and to brazenly waltz in without his permission was a great travesty. So what was this girl –who was obviously not a member- doing there and speaking to Atobe of all people?

"That's the new manager," Oshitari felt compelled to point out. Who knew that his teammates could be so slow? "Ito Himawari-chan."

Gakuto was the first to snap back to earth. "Oh? She looks… okay. I guess." There was a hint of disappointment in his voice.

"I often see her, but I don't know her personally," Shishido admitted, adjusting his cap.

"Well," Choutarou smiled. "I think we should go there and introduce ourselves. She's going to be our manager so we all have to get along with her!"

Gakuto scratched his head. "Heard she had a one week trial period, but meh."

They wasted no time in aligning themselves in the very front of the crowd of people standing in a straight line. This was standard operating procedure. Before every practice, they must all show themselves first before Atobe.

"Everyone," Atobe called out in a clear voice. Everyone looked at him anxiously. When Atobe spoke, people listened. Whether it was about his extraordinary prowess or his great hair, it was a golden rule to never speak a word whenever he would have his "moment." To be honest, it's like one of those unwritten laws in Hyoutei. Disturbing Atobe when he is giving his speech is almost like committing suicide.

"Ore-sama knows that all of you have been informed that our club was recruiting a tennis manager. Ore-sama found someone competent enough, but she would be tested for one week. Everyone, I introduce to you Ito Himawari!" He gestured his hand to the girl who gave a ladylike bow.

"Hello everyone!" Himawari greeted, trying her best to look friendly. "My name is Ito Himawari. I hope we'll have a great year together."

All the members clapped their hands in acknowledgement. The girl privately enjoyed her fifteen minutes of fame.

Atobe purposefully coughed rather loudly. "That would be enough for now. Naa, Kabaji?"

"Usu." The giant mechanically responded.

"Everyone, return to the tennis courts!" Atobe ordered before turning his attention to the Regulars. "All of you, twenty five laps around the court."

The Regulars all sighed in relief. Twenty five laps? Halleluiah! Atobe rarely gave them anything less than fifty, so it was already a miracle if they were demanded by their buchou to run forty laps. They all simultaneously looked at Ito Himawari. Should they thank her for helping Atobe release his pent-up frustration?

* * *

Should Atobe release his pent-up frustration on her?

Himawari thought about this as she huffed tiredly and massaged her sore legs. Without any sort of explanation whatsoever, Atobe ordered, no, _decreed _her to run ten laps. In what crazy world did the manager have to run laps with the members anyway? She wanted to give him a murderous glare in retort, but decided against it, preferring to instead fake a smile and start running. Deep inside though, she was thinking of a kajillion and one ways on how to make Atobe suffer.

After taking a short break, she also had to get the beverages and distribute them to the members. The Regulars were fussier, she thought, since they all had their own drinking bottles and she had to get their drinks right. One opted for carrot juice, two liked energy drinks, another dude had a thing for green tea, someone liked plain water and there's a bizarre creature among them who drank garlic soft drink. **(3)**

GARLIC. SOFT. DRINK.

BLEAGH.

Nobody ever had the manners to mutter a word of thanks. Not even Oshitari, who only nodded politely when he gave her back his drink. She wondered if this was all the influence of their oh-so-great captain.

The only exception was a nice second year named Ohtori Choutarou. He had the most curious hair color- gleaming silver actually- and he was rather tall, though not overtly so. He was only a second year, but he gave the appearance of someone more mature and levelheaded.

"My senpai-tachi may seem really strange but they don't mean any harm," Choutarou assured when she approached him.

"Of course not," Himawari responded, switching on her 'friendly' front. _They're just tennis club freaks!_

"I'm glad you understand Himawari-senpai," Choutarou had a look of relief in his face. "I'm also glad that you're normal. Sometimes, I wonder if I'm the only sane one in the group." His eyes then widened as realization of what he said hit him. "Ah! It's not like I have anything against my senpai-tachi or something! In fact, I look up to them! Honestly!"

Himawari mulled this over. "I'm sure you do," she murmured softly before looking back at him. "You're a nice guy, Ohtori-san. The team is lucky to have you."

"Thank you Himawari-san!" Choutarou beamed at her, obviously inspired to work harder. With that, he made his way back to the tennis courts with renewed vigor.

The raven haired girl heaved a sigh. The day was turning unpleasant, but she had to admit that her brief chat with Choutarou made it a whole lot better. She eyed the papers that were given to her with disdain. Why paperwork of all things?

"Ah!"

As soon as she thought of what a nuisance it was to do paperwork, a strong gust of wind passed by and blew the top pages of the documents.

_Damn it!_

"Come back!" She exclaimed as she chased off after one of the documents.

"Oi!" A voice suddenly called out to her. She craned her neck towards the direction of the unfamiliar voice when-

_**PLAK!**_

"Tennis Ball…" Shishido finished… well, _lamely_. He gave an exasperated look at Hiyoshi, who did not seem bothered at al by the sudden incident, before approaching the girl. "Ah… Are you alright?"

In Himawari's mind, her suffering must be a cruel trick played by Kami-sama. Her head ached after reading an entire volume of encyclopedia about tennis the night before, and her body was sore from all the laps Atobe made her run. The tennis ball from a while ago also managed to bruise her left cheek, and she felt it sting, making her hiss in pain.

If she wasn't so self-conscious, she would've stood up right away and smacked the tennis club freaks. But that wasn't an option. The _kenkyuusei _Himawari wouldn't hurt a fly even. With a heavy heart, she just muttered certain profanities under her breath.

"What are you doing?" Shishido asked, looking at her strangely. Somehow, he was getting the feeling that their new manager might be harboring a secret passion for rapping. He could've sworn that she was muttering incomprehensible things a while ago in such a fast manner that no mere mortal could ever manage to keep up with what she was saying.

Himawari quickly stood up. "Why nothing Shishido-san! I was merely calculating the velocity of the tennis ball that hit me!"

Shihido felt his jaw drop. "Ah, er… You alright then?"

"Peachy!" She gave a grin that made her sparkle. "And I must say, your serve a while ago was very intense! The curved ball managed to soar wildly in the air despite flowing against the direction of the wind, zooming past the net and making a perfect-"

"Right," Shishido cut her off, obviously weirded out by the new manager. "Um, but just so you know, Hiyoshi was the one who threw the ball."

"Oh?" Himawari turned around to look at the lone tennis player with a rather unfashionable haircut on the opposite side of the court. _So it was you!_

Again, Shishido did not know what to say. He watched as the new manager lose the sparkle and emit a dark aura. She was still smiling, of course, but the glare she was giving the oblivious Hiyoshi could already slice three inches of steel.

"Ito! Shishido!" Gakuto greeted, suddenly making an appearance over Himawari's shoulder.

"Gakuto-san, right?" Himawari smiled prettily, seemingly undisturbed by Gakuto's arrival. Shishido privately noted that the dark aura was gone.

"Have you seen me do my acrobatics yet?" The newcomer asked excitedly, making the other two sweatdrop. But Gakuto continued, "Wait 'til you see me in action! I'm even much better than that Kikumaru of Seigaku!"

"_Seigaku_?" Himawari echoed.

"Just some no name school that got lucky," Gakuto quickly said, waving a hand as if to dismiss the whole matter aside.

"My, what a coincidence!" Himawari piped in, brightening up again. "Seigaku was my former school back in Junior High!"

Shishido's ears perked up as Gakuto asked, "Really? So you know them?"

Himawari scratched her cheek. "Personally? Not really. But they're really famous. I was classmates with Fuji-san and Kikumaru-san but as for personal interactions, there were none that I could share. Everyone really wanted to be friends with the tennis team, so I didn't really have the time to socialize with them. They're all so really nice though!"

Gakuto laughed. "How much '_really_' did you use?"

"What?" Himawari tilted her head, confused. She bristled. Was he mocking her? She didn't like being mocked! If Gakuto was mocking her, then-

"Hey, have you seen Jirou?" Shishido said all of a sudden, inadvertently preventing the bloodshed that could've happened.

"Still sleeping," Gakuto answered with a slight shrug of his shoulders.

Cue awkward silence.

"Right, so I'm getting back to Oshitari now! I've wasted enough time here anyway! Nice to have a chat with you, Ito!" Gakuto then gave a smug smirk before hurrying back to where his doubles partner was waiting for him.

"I think I'll go too!" Shishido said, turning to Himawari. "Sorry again for the ball a while ago. Bye!"

Himawari watched Shishido leave before frowning. _Tennis club freaks… I'll show you who Ito Himawari is! _She then picked up the documents and plotted… things… Somehow, it involved Atobe Keigo and Winnie the Pooh…

"Oi! Stop spacing out Ito!"

"Hai! Atobe-san~!"

* * *

**(1)** The word is "Ah" and "Nn" is used by Oshitari after asking a question to emphasize his Kansai dialect. I just placed it here because it isn't frequently used in fanfiction.

**(2)** See above

**(3)** I kid you not. There really is such a thing as garlic softdrink.

**(4)** Kenkyuusei is a Japanese term for a model student

**(Sidenote:)** The information about tennis on the first part of this chappie is taken from my bestfriend, Wikipedia.

* * *

**AN:** Yo minna-san! It's been a while since my last update! Gomen ne, I was busy doing other things. School is my top priority for now. Well, in any case, a big thank you to all those who reviewed and put this story in their alert.

I still have a lot of concerns when it comes to this story. Of course, characterization is one of them because I want to keep the character's personalities as close to canon as possible. If something is bothering you, please do not hesitate to voice it out. I'll try my best to work things out.


	4. The Manager is a Girlfriend

**"Managerial Mayhem"**

**SUMMARY: **Wanted! A manageress for Hyoutei's Tennis Club. Applicant? Ito Himawari, an ambitious girl who wants to be anything but normal. What to expect: Headaches, sore legs, angry fangirls, flying tennis balls, and maybe even… love?

**DISCLAIMER:** The Prince of Tennis was created by Konomi Takeshi. As usual, the characters in the franchise do not belong to me and belong to their respective owner(s). Aside from the characters I create, I do not mean to infringe on any current copyrights on the series. Thank you and have fun reading!

* * *

**CHAPTER FOUR: The Manager is a Girlfriend**

_I'm popular_.

Himawari stumbled upon this stunning conclusion one day in Philosophy class before her club activities. It was precisely two weeks after she had been declared as the temporary manager. After her exemplary efforts, Atobe was forced to acknowledge her capabilities and deem her their official club manager.

She had been frequently getting love letters and confessions from different schoolmates after that. Boys all called her innocent and modest and one even likened her to a fragile flower that he needed to protect. Fragile? Please! Himawari almost fell out of her bed laughing when she read that one. As if that wasn't enough, everytime she would reject one of them, the suitor would go on mumbling the names of the Hyoutei Regulars in contempt in a way that he might as well have been screaming.

Then and again, maybe the rumors that she had been getting too friendly with the Tennis Club Regulars were growing exaggerated to the point of corrupting the minds of the ignorant Hyoutei students. The school newspaper, possibly more dedicated to gossip than school occurrences, published an article about Himawari getting the position of the manager that caused a riot among the female population of Hyoutei.

True, she had become popular, but she also knew that there were some people out there who were envious of her and would do anything to pull her down. Lately, she's been getting "interesting" messages from anonymous people…

_**BACK OFF MY RYOU-CHAN!**_

_**JIROU DOESN'T NEED A FUGLY B-H LIKE YOU!**_

_**TANGO PAIR FOREVAH!**_

And so and so forth. Himawari had a massive headache as she decided to let the letters meet their doom. (Paper shredder anyone?)

She's popular now, but why does she feel so unsatisfied?

"Class dismissed!"

The teacher's voice snapped Himawari back to reality. Himawari blinked at the blackboard, now filled with the day's lessons that she did not jot down her in her notebook. She inwardly cursed herself for being distracted as she hurriedly took her pen and copied the notes with carefulness.

"Himawari-chan?" Yuki looked over Himawari's shoulder.

"Ah!" Himawari made a mistake in writing.

"So sorry!" Yuki placed a hand on her mouth, horror-struck. "I was too loud so I-"

"Don't mind, don't mind," Himawari found herself saying. "It's not a big deal. See?" She placed a parenthesis on the part where she made the mistake.

Yuki did not look relieved, but even more concerned. "Himawari-chan, I'm really worried about you. I know you're a really amazing person but I think you're overworking yourself. Not to mention that the threats you've been receiving lately on your locker are getting worse and worse!"

"Not too loud, Yuki!" Himawari flashed Yuki a deadly glare.

"Demo," Yuki bit her lip. "Himawari-chan! There's even a dead frog on your locker! And the spikes on your school shoes! And the-"**(1)**

"Aan~?" Atobe's voice suddenly filled every corner of the room with static. "What is this Ore-sama hears?"

Himawari and Yuki felt the blood drain from their faces.

"Ahahaha," Yuki nervously laughed, sweat forming on her face. What should she say? She's very bad at lying! "Ahahaha! The Kabuki show last night at NHK was really incredible, ne Himawari-chan? They've got the best actors there! It's so amazing! Ahahaha!" **(2)**

Himawari wanted to facepalm. Atobe could see right through Yuki, no doubt about it.

"Ahaha!" Yuki laughed forcibly, making her sound like an android. "Ahaha! So funny! Have you seen it, Atobe-sama? Hahahaha!"

Atobe only elegantly raised an eyebrow but said nothing else.

"Pay no mind to Yuki-chan, Atobe-san!" Himawari decided to come to the rescue. Yuki cannot lie to save her life. She's much more experienced when it came to these matters. "The Kabuki show just did some temporary brain damage to Yuki-chan. She'll be back to normal in no time!" The girl then gave another award winning smile. "So, uhm, what brings you here anyway, Atobe-san?

Atobe seemed to be deep in thought, before responding, "Yes. Well, Ore-sama wishes to see the documents about the club expenses. There are also some matters to make plans for, especially the arrangement of practice matches with nearby schools. The tournament is coming up. Ore-sama hopes that you would not forget that."

"I see! I see!" Himawari nodded as she noticed all her classmates becoming awe-struck at Atobe's presence. She couldn't blame them for feeling disoriented; Atobe rarely graced their classroom with his presence. To be truthful, a big commotion was already forming inside the classroom.

"Hmm?" The King of Pompous Planet lifted his head to scan the room. "Where is Oshitari? Aren't you two classmates?"

"I think he already left the room," Himawari answered. "I'll be going too. I just need a minute to finish my notes."

"Go ahead and finish them then," Atobe said, though it felt more like a command. Himawari screamed inside her head that Atobe didn't need to tell her that because she was going to do them anyway. His reminder was totally unnecessary.

"Uh…" She turned to Atobe when the awkwardness in the room started to get heavy. Why were her classmates taking pictures with their cameras anyway? "Shouldn't you be going now, Atobe-san?"

"Ore-sama wishes to wait for you," Atobe stated. Himawari wished that he didn't say that because the females in the classroom all fainted in shock. "Be grateful, Ito."

_Like hell I would…_ Himawari turned back to her notebook and continued writing, but compared to her legible handwriting a while ago, her notes were more, er, scribbly.

(On one corner of the room, a classmate had fallen in a suspiciously graceful manner. "Atobe-sam_aaaaa_!" She cried out as she fell down, down, dooownnn-)

_You did that on purpose._ Atobe pretended not to notice the fallen girl and continued standing over behind Himawari's shoulder, much to the girl's irritation. The girl's owl-like eyes then blinked in confusion. Without noticing it, she'd involuntarily drawn a jagged line in black ink right across the page.

"Whoopsie!" She said as she tilted her head and smiled playfully. "Ohoho! How clumsy of me! I made a mistake."

"Hurry up, Ito," droned Atobe's bored voice. "The great Ore-sama is waiting, lest you forget."

(At this proclamation, the fallen girl stood up and dusted her skirt while longingly looking at Atobe.)

"Of course," Himawari replied as another ominous aura overtook her body again. _Whoever said that you should wait anyway?_

(The fallen girl's companions were enviously gazing at Himawari.)

Nevertheless, the girl continued with her work. When Himawari finished, she and Atobe walked together to go to the tennis courts. While Himawari was happy that her classmates were all paying attention to her, she was also half-embarrassed because something else might be going on inside their heads. When a girl and a boy walked together, it was almost impossible for the gossiping body of Hyoutei to not pick it up and start a speculation circle. Atobe cuts a godlike figure among the Hyoutei population, but she really couldn't stand him!

However, it made her heart lighter when she realized that Kabaji was with them in the first place. It was a blessing how Kabaji could be invisible sometimes. Even if he was large, his presence almost always goes unnoticed because he gives the impression of an inconspicuous puppet.

"A-Atobe-sama!"

A girl with a petite body and young face came forward to meet the two down the hallway.

Judging from the way that her eyes gave that slightly glazed look, the girl was obviously another great fangirl of Atobe. It was as if she wanted to jump into Atobe's arms and kiss him senseless while proclaiming her never-ending love for the Hyoutei King.

The girl then noticed Himawari, and gave her a frosty look. Or perhaps it could be read as –_What are you standing there for, thus preventing me from jumping into Atobe-sama's arms and kissing him senseless all the while proclaiming my never-ending love for him?_

The new manager sighed. This was really getting out of hand.

"Atobe-sama, Ito-san," the girl finally spoke after a minute or so of gazing at the two. She looked very nervous, playing with a lock of her hair. "Forgive me for being rude… But I just have to confirm!" She took a deep breath. "A-Are you two… Going out?"

The horror! Himawari promptly choked as she looked at Atobe for help.

"Oh, but it seems that Kabaji has taken a liking for Ito," Atobe suddenly said, making Himawari glare at the back of his neck. Maybe, just maybe, if she glared hard enough, it would erupt in flames and cause a permanent hole. "Isn't that right, Kabaji?"

Himawari pleaded inside her head. _Be one with the wall Kabaji! Please don't-_

"Usu."

_TRAITOR!_

"Then…" On the mysterious girl's face formed a huge smile. "You two are not going out?"

"Of course not," they answered at the same time, with Atobe saying it with enviable grace and Himawari saying it with a rather obvious forced smile.

"Thank you so much! I have to tell this to everyone!" The girl looked really delighted as she turned to Himawari and winked, "I wish you and Kabaji-san all the happiness in the world!"

_What the hell?_

Himawari looked at Atobe, who was wearing a very smug expression. She couldn't stop the scowl from making an appearance on her face. _Why Kabaji of all people? It would've been better if he just denied it! This makes things so much more complicated! _

"Aan~?" Atobe seemed amused. "What is that look you are giving Ore-sama, Ito?"

"Nothing at all, Atobe-san," Himawari replied though there was a certain edge to her voice.

"Would you rather confirm the rumors?" Atobe asked teasingly.

Himawari made a strangled sound. "Of course not! Atobe-san! In fact, I also like Kabaji! He's a good listener! Kabaji is perfect! Ne Kabaji-san?" Without realizing it, she turned to Kabaji and smiled at him. He didn't even move a muscle on his face. "See? Kabaji agrees with me! We're like peanut butter and jelly! We would make the very best of friends!"

"Excellent," Atobe's facial expression changed and grew more serious. "From now on, Kabaji would be accompanying you until Ore-sama orders him to stop."

The raven haired girl didn't know how to respond. Mechanically, she took a step back, her eyes twitching in apprehension. She did not know how the Hyoutei King's mind worked and while the general consensus agreed that he was a genius in many things, Himawari couldn't help but think that this- this _insanity_!- was just a little game for him to test her.

If this was a challenge, she wouldn't be the one to lose. "If you say so, Atobe-san."

"You're very obedient, Ito."

Himawari almost bared her teeth in response.

"Really, this is all for the best," Atobe mysteriously said as he picked up his pace and started walking again. "Come Ito! We have much to discuss!"

* * *

"What a load of crap!" Shishido commented as he flipped a page from the _Hyoutei Times_.

"This is worth a laugh though!" Gakuto sniggered as he drank his juice.

"Senpai-tachi…" Choutarou couldn't help but notice the mess they were making.

"…" Hiyoshi dutifully ate the _onigiri_ his mother prepared for him. **(3)**

"What do you think of this, Ito-san?" Oshitari turned to the only female in the group.

"I think," Himawari struggled to hide the frustration in her voice, "that it's perfectly alright with me if our oblivious schoolmates assume that I am dating Kabaji-san. They do not know the truth anyway. As they say: '_Ignorance is bliss_.' Ne, Kabaji-san?"

Kabaji chewed his food.

"See?" She smiled back at them, a black aura emanating from her.

All the Regulars blinked. Was that toxic atmosphere just a figment of their imagination? Shishido couldn't help but get the feeling of déjà vu.

"Anyway, good things have happened since Kabaji-san became attached to me," Himawari shrugged. Her statement was actually true; ever since she had been linked as Kabaji's future girlfriend, all the horrible messages immediately ceased and the voodoo dolls that were being delivered to her house mysteriously disappeared. It gave Himawari some relief. However, there was one persistent person out there who continued to pester her with death threats.

"Then all is fine," Oshitari smirked after a minute of looking quite thoughtful. "If Atobe was the one who directly ordered Kabaji to stay by your side, then all is fine."

Himawari inwardly frowned. There were a lot of things that could upset Ito Himawari and one of them was being left out of the loop. She didn't get what the Hyoutei tensai was trying to say and somehow, it made her feel uncomfortable. Was there a hidden meaning in his words? She coughed and decided to change the topic, "Wait, why are we eating at the rooftop? I am pretty sure that the principal strictly told us during the Opening Ceremony that no one was allowed here especially during break hours."

"If buchou said it was okay, then it's okay!" Gakuto threw a piece of shrimp high up in the air and caught it with his chopsticks. What a show-off.

"Yeah, his word is law!" Shishido added. The baseball capped boy didn't seem too relaxed around Himawari's presence though.

"I see…" Himawari allowed herself to smile again. She did not want to admit it, but the tennis players around her were friendlier than she could've ever imagined. Somehow, they made her feel as if she belonged with them. "I should loosen up some more… Ne, Kabaji-san?"

Kabaji swallowed his food in response.

* * *

**(1)** In Japan, students are required to take off their shoes and put on slippers at the entrance of the school. This means that their school shoes are all inside the locker.

**(2)** Kabuki is a form of Japanese theater. Nowadays, Kabuki can be seen on old theatres or live broadcasts.

**(3)** The word onigiri means riceball in Japanese.

* * *

Why halloo there minna-san! I'm back! Anyone missed me? -narrowly dodges random flying deadly objects- It was a joke OK? No need to get so worked up about it! Sheesh!

Just so you would all know, I decided to entirely delete the preview sections of this story on Chapters 1,2 and 3. The reason? I think that it was quite unnecessary and would just spoil too much of the plot.

Now time for some **MAIL TIME**!

**MyPrinceOishi08-** thank you for reviewing again! As for how Himawari would handle the job, it would take about two to three chapters more before she can really impress Atobe. -wink, wink-

**lol**- I know right? Even Kabaji needs some loving! XD

**Tallyism**- Himawari's character was actually based from the main protagonist of Kare Kano! Wafufufu... I've never heard of Skip Beat though. Is it good? Well, in any case, I really appreciate your review. And sunshine princess? Haha! Cute nickname for Himawari-chan! (Though she really isn't such a happy-go-lucky person.) About Atobe pulling off a bastard act? Hehe, we'll see about that. -evil grin-

**XxMichyBabyxX**- You really love Himawari's song? Haha! I actually thought that it was quite corny though... ^.^; Oh, and Himawari's not a Mary Sue? YAY ME! Thank you so much! -bows gratefully-

**Lady Aduka**- Wow, a real life Himawari-chan! -gets awed- Thanks for taking the time to review and wishing me luck on my studies!

**brokenasepsis**- Thank you for pointing that out! As you can see, I do not want to portray Atobe as just an egoistic rich guy who thinks he owns the entire Milky Way Galaxy. There's more substance to him and I will try my best to depict a more flawed side of him in this fic. (Oh, and did you move your account? It seems like I can't see your prof page!)

Hmm. I just noticed that the pacing is incredibly slow. Maybe it's time to step it up a bit? Haha. And if you notice, there's not much AtobeHimawari stuff yet... You see, I want to develop Himawari's chracter first and focus on her relationship with the whole tennis club as a whole. Hope that helps!


	5. The Manager is a Target

**"Managerial Mayhem"**

**SUMMARY: **Wanted! A manageress for Hyoutei's Tennis Club. Applicant? Ito Himawari, an ambitious girl who wants to be anything but normal. What to expect: Headaches, sore legs, angry fangirls, flying tennis balls, and maybe even… love?

**DISCLAIMER:** The Prince of Tennis was created by Konomi Takeshi. As usual, the characters in the franchise do not belong to me and belong to their respective owner(s). Aside from the characters I create, I do not mean to infringe on any current copyrights on the series. Thank you and have fun reading!

* * *

**CHAPTER FIVE: The Manager is a Target**

Classes ended early because there was a very important meeting that all the teachers in Hyoutei were required to attend that particular day. Deciding that she had to pay attention to the call of nature, Himawari headed straight to the ladies' comfort room for a badly needed bladder break. And after she was done and was in the middle of washing her hands (like every good girl should after doing her business), four girls came in at the same time and made small talk with her.

"Himawari-san, in behalf of the entire fanclub, we extend our deepest and sincerest gratitude for your commendable efforts," the pixie hair girl said, whom we shall dub '_Spiky_' just for the heck of it (and partly because her hair was spiky).

"Efforts?" Himawari blinked at them and slightly frowned. "On what?"

"For getting Kabaji out of the way!"

And of course, that explanation was not enough for Himawari to fully comprehend what they were talking about. It was like listening to an alien language, or if not, then maybe Chinese. Sensing her growing confusion, one of the girls who shall be now known as "Megane-chan" pulled out a set of photographs from her Hello Kitty bag. The girl excitedly handed them to the tennis club manager and Himawari, not the one to refuse (at least in public), took a good look at them and- **(1)**

_**WHOA.**_

-managed to conceal a grimace from appearing on her face as she shuffled the pictures back and forth in disbelief. All the pictures were top notch and Himawari was pretty sure that they weren't the works of just an amateur photographer.

_ATOBE, ATOBE and MORE ATOBE?_

But why were all these pictures focused solely on the Hyoutei King? Front view, side view, back view, top view, close-ups, candids, etcetera… Really, all these different sides of the same person were making her dizzy.

But what was she supposed to expect? Rabid fangirls were one thing; Atobe's rabid fangirls were another.

"Himawari-san, with Kabaji out of the way, we can finally take clear snapshots of our Atobe-sama!" The girl with the, er, _skin problems_ enthusiastically reported.

"Er…" Really, what was she supposed to say? Something along the lines of '_Hey, I support your stalking campaign one hundred percent_?'

Spiky's hand suddenly clasped Himawari's left shoulder. "Though we really do not know what you ever saw in Kabaji, we still wish you guys all the best." She lowered her voice into a whisper. "Though to be honest, I'll give you guys less than a month since he doesn't look like the perfect loverboy and all. If ya know what I mean." Himawari snapped her head and turned to the other girls who were currently giving her the kind of look that was exclusively used for pitiful kicked puppies.

Himawari glared at them pointedly. "First of all, I am not- "

"Anyway," the girl with too much make up on her face cut off Himawari's little speech and clapped her hands to call the girls' attentions. "I think that even though our _Atobe Photoshop_ is growing by the day, we must find a way to expand our activities." During the girl's monologue, Himawari tried her best to sneak out, but Miss Toxic Face was quite the speedy one and immediately grabbed her hand. "I think we should ask Himawari-san about a few details concerning our beloved Atobe-sama!" **(2)**

"YEAH!" There was an infinite understanding among these people, made possible by their mutual desperate need to stalk Atobe Keigo.

"Uhm…"

"Go on, Himawari-san! Share to us the wonderfulness of our King!" Spiky prodded, looking dangerously eager.

"Atobe-san is… Er, he is-" Himawari tried to decide what the best words would be to describe Atobe. Normally, she would use colorful words that meant something like _dazzling_, _awesome_, or _God-like_. But that was ages ago, when she knew nothing of Atobe's true personality. Times have changed. And now, her blood boiled in anger everytime she thought of how evil and mean and underhanded and pompous the guy was. It was his entire fault that she was being linked to Kabaji! Atobe ruined all of her plans and he was-

"-an ass."

The moment those words left her mouth was also the moment Himawari knew that she goofed. Jaws hit the floor and four pairs of eyes were transfixed on her. Himawari gave herself a mental slap while wondering at the same time where she had gone wrong in life. Before the girls could react though, Himawari pulled an ad lib from out of nowhere and smiled at them in a sickly sweet manner.

"He has fine _assets_," Himawari told them, not batting an eyelash.

"We all know that," the girl with the excessive make-up slowly replied after a moment of recovery. "Unless you…" She gasped, horror-struck, and the other girls took on a similar unflattering expression.

"OH NO YOU DIDN'T!"

_**BAM!**_

The door to the restroom unexpectedly opened up, revealing Kabaji, the tennis team's resident human gargoyle.

"P-P-PERVERT!"

_Nice timing, Kabaji!_ Himawari took this as a sign to retreat as the other girls went to find an open stall to go and hide in while they screamed like wild chickens on the loose. As if that made sense.

Well, it was a good thing Kabaji was there though. She grinned as she danced down the stairs. Wait, why was he here again? Himawari tilted her head to look at Kabaji and when she saw the cellphone on his hand, she eventually knew what his purpose was.

"Hello?"

"Ito."

Well, well, well! If it wasn't Mr. Fine Assets himself! She pressed the cellphone closer to her ear. "Atobe-san? Is there anything you want from me?"

"Of course there is. Ore-sama wouldn't be calling you now for no purpose at all, would he?" came the muffled reply.

The manager refrained from rolling her eyes.

"There is a minor problem that Ore-sama should have attended to as soon as possible, but unfortunately, Ore-sama has a conflict with his schedule for today and therefore cannot directly address this predicament. Ore-sama would like _you_ to take over this matter."

Himawari was a bit surprised. Now she was his personal gopher too?

Atobe wasn't done. "Kabaji has all the papers that you need. The Library is temporarily closed for renovation so you can go to the nearest _Sunbucks _store to work on this. Ore-sama is inclined to believe that you would at least know how to operate a laptop and use PowerPoint. Again, Kabaji has the reservation card. After finishing, report without delay back to Ore-sama. Understand, Ito?" (3)

"Of course," and then the manager slid the phone shut with a loud growl.

* * *

It was already six o' clock in the evening. Most of the students were already on their way home or were already home. Himawari didn't understand why Atobe was making her work to the bones this day. Again, she proceeded to repeat her mantra inside her head:

_Damn you Pompous King!_

Himawari could feel her temper rising as she replayed the day's events inside her head. The meeting with Atobe's deranged fangirls was at least amusing in its own little way. Hanging out on Sunbucks was cool too; as it turned out, Atobe's reservation card also had the power to order limitless frapuccinos and various assortments of snacks. However, when she opened the laptop and inserted the USB, she almost had a nosebleed when she saw the mountain of data waiting to be organized. The papers Kabaji had with him were quite useful, but in the end, Himawari still had to rely on her own expertise to manage the files that Atobe had given her.

She didn't want to admit it, but Atobe had the potential to become the most successful businessman in Japan in the future. In addition to running the student council with an unprecedented efficiency, serving as a dedicated captain to the Hyoutei Tennis Club (which, take note, houses two hundred and more club members), and staying at the top of his class every semester, he also attends business functions as his father's representative which exposes him, naturally as the heir of the Atobe Zaibatsu.

No wonder she hates him so much. His perfection was getting on her nerves.

She looked down on the Sunbucks complimentary coffee she was given. Apparently, Atobe wanted one and since she was ever so polite (IN PUBLIC!), she volunteered to hand it personally to the diva himself.

Himawari paused, noticing that something was wrong. She turned around and realized that Kabaji wasn't with her. She probably lost him on the way. The raven haired girl shrugged and figured out that it wouldn't make much of a difference if Kabaji was with her or not.

Unbeknownst to the girl, a figure had been spying on her. He smiled through his binoculars and made a call.

* * *

"_Meet me at seven."_

The warm evening air blew on Himawari's face. Atobe had instructed her to meet him by seven, and of course Himawari, the submissive manager of the team, did as she was told and went. Ooh, his bossiness really annoyed her!

The girl checked her cellphone. She had texted her father already to tell him that she would probably be late for dinner. He hadn't sent a reply yet, she noted, as she returned her cellphone to her skirt pocket.

The school grounds were deserted, and it made Himawari feel wary. It must be all in her head since she swore she saw a bunch of shadows moving behind her. She took another step. And another. And another. Okay, she was getting paranoid. This was Hyoutei! Security wasn't exactly lax here! It was just her imagination when she saw another shadow of a man looming _almost_ right behind her. Yeah, just her imagination!

She felt a sudden vibration. That must be her father. One hand automatically went to her skirt pocket, when-

"Hey little girl…" A husky voice said out of nowhere.

"Who's that?" Himawari now felt more alert. Were there any students left aside from her and Atobe who was supposed to be waiting inside the clubroom?

There was silence at first. She narrowed her eyes and three burly men stepped out from the shadows, all looking equally reprehensive. She froze on the spot.

"Wanna play with us?" One of them sneered.

For a moment, she didn't move. She _couldn't_ move. She desperately tried to move her shaking limbs so she could escape quickly. "S-Sorry. I have to go. Now, if you'll excuse me…"

The man suddenly grabbed her wrist and prevented her from escaping. Strong arms trapped her the moment she was within reach, rendering her unable to escape. The coffee on her hands fell and formed a puddle on the grassy ground. Himawari let out a gasp, as another one pointed a knife at her neck. "Don't get mad," the man with the weapon whispered to her ear, his voice sounding amused. "Just obeying orders. We're gonna have fun right?"

Himawari did not answer. Her mind was racing, and her heart was beating so rapidly that she was surprised it hadn't leapt out from her rib cage yet. Her eyes darted around furiously as she desperately wished for someone to come and notice her plight. Where the hell were those damn guards anyway? They should be doing their damn duties!

"Don't scream," her captor warned. The man then pressed the bladed weapon on her neck, making a light scratch on her skin. "This won't hurt at all."

The girl's eyes flashed when she felt the man loosen his grip for a bit. Deciding to take this opportunity, she attempted to wiggle her way out.

"_**NO!**_" She yelled as she bit his arm savagely. Taken by surprise, the man yelped in pain. Himawari staggered dizzily and tried to summon all of her strength to stand up but her captor was back on his feet. He reached for her long hair and pulled it, dragging the girl's entire body back to him in the process. She felt the cold and sharp weapon grazing her arm. That was it. That was her last chance of escaping, her last hope to be free. She closed her eyes, waiting for the worst…

_**PLAK!**_

It all happened in a blur.

A flying tennis ball came and hit the man with the knife squarely on the face with so much force that he was knocked down on the ground. Before anyone could react, another ball appeared and hit the man again which ultimately made him unconscious. The other men, plus Himawari, looked up in astonishment to see who threw those tennis balls.

"_Yare yare_…" The mysterious savior said, stifling a yawn. "I just had a good sleep and this is what greets me?" **(4)**

Akutagawa Jirou stood triumphantly on top of a dead tree trunk, a tennis racket on one hand. He had been sleeping at a comfortable place for a few hours until his eyes opened up by its own when he heard a loud commotion not too far from him. Of course, being a man moved by curiosity, he just couldn't resist the possibility of uncovering a dark secret, just like the action heroes he cheered for in the movies. He decided to follow the source of the noise.

To his disappointment, there weren't any dark secrets whatsoever, but the situation that welcomed him was certainly 'dark' in its own way. Three man ganging up on the Hyoutei Tennis Club manager? Unforgivable!

"A-Akutagawa-san!" Himawari said once she recognized the man.

Akutagawa Jirou, the Sleeping Beauty of Hyoutei. Rarely did she have a decent conversation with him since ninety percent of the time, Jirou was asleep. As for the other ten percent, it was reserved for playing tennis or for running laps on Atobe's orders. It seemed strangely odd to see him so _awake_, but who was she to complain when this boy might be able to get her out of this predicament?

Something inside her heart then ached. If Jirou would get in trouble too, she cannot forgive herself! She didn't want to compromise Jirou's safety too. Really, what can a scrawny highschooler do when his opponents were three muscular men? He was clearly outmatched. She turned pale and yelled out, "AKUTAGAWA-SAN! RUN AWAY! CALL THE POLICE!"

"Be quiet, woman!" The man bellowed as he elbowed Himawari on the sides. He did not even bother to notice the tears that sprang on her eyes as he regarded Jirou with a menacing glare, "Heh. Just a highschool brat. Odeki would finish him!"

As if on cue, the guy named Odeki hurtled forward, ready to give Jirou a finishing blow. When he punched at Jirou, his fist connected nothing but air as Jirou ducked just in time and kicked him in the shins. Hyoutei's valley specialist followed it up with two punches in the abdomen and an impressive roundhouse kick. He landed on his feet gracefully, like a feline, while Odeki stumbled backwards, a little dizzy.

"Is that the best you can do?" Jirou asked mockingly as he rushed towards the wobbly man and hit him on the face with his racket.

"Y-You damn brat!" The leader of the pack held on to Himawari even tighter, his firm grip almost crushing her bones. "I still have this girl with me! Stay back! Stay back, you hear-"

Before he could finish his sentence, a massive force smacked him at the back of his head, making him tumble forward and release Himawari. Thankfully, the girl did not hit the ground, for Kabaji was there to catch her right away. She swayed for a bit, her center of gravity still off.

"Nice job, Kabaji!" Jirou gave a thumbs up and a wide smile.

Himawari blinked a few times. Her head was still throbbing. Even if she didn't want to think about it, her whole body was still shaking from the fear of the incident a while ago. If it weren't for Jirou and Kabaji, who knows what might've happened to her? Her eyes scanned her surroundings with slight apprehension. Three bodies were lying on the ground, all out cold. She weakly turned her head around to face the stone-faced giant who just rescued her. "K-Kabaji-san… Arigatou…"

This time, Kabaji gave her a reply. "Usu."

* * *

"Ah, I'm really hungry now! This is the problem whenever I sleep too much! I get too hungry! Ah!" Jirou complained as the three of them walked towards the clubroom.

"Atobe would throw a heavenly fit if he finds out that I wasted his precious coffee…" Himawari muttered, a dark aura forming around her again. Jirou and Kabaji didn't mind her though. Jirou was too busy describing to Kabaji the exciting dream he had before he woke up.

Himawari couldn't believe Akutagawa Jirou. He's certainly something, that's for sure. He just fought some mysterious perverted creeps and yet there he was, conversing about his dream match with a guy named Marui from Rikkai like nothing happened. And Kabaji was… Well, he's Kabaji. If she didn't know any better, she would have thought that the Hyoutei Tennis Club was a breeding ground for future martial artists. She must have been the only reasonable one out of them for thinking of calling the police ASAP through Kabaji's cellphone.

Thankfully, the Hyoutei guards came and assisted them. They took the three goons with them and that was the end of that.

"Where were you?" Atobe asked them when they reached the clubhouse.

Himawari didn't even bother to hide her surprise when she found out that Atobe was waiting for them outside. Everyone knew that he thought of himself as a king, and a king never waits. _Ever_. So when Atobe's sharp eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at them, Himawari couldn't help but look out for any signs of the coming Apocalypse.

He lightly grazed Himawari's cheek. "Ore-sama believes that something horrible happened, naa Ito?"

Himawari fidgeted slightly from the touch. She coughed and said, "Uh… Yes… Something like that."

Atobe cocked his head and then turned to Kabaji, "Were you by Ito's side when this incident happened, Kabaji?"

There was pregnant silence, followed by, "…No."

Atobe exhaled sharply and patted Kabaji on the back. "As long as everything turned out alright, it is fine Kabaji. Do not be hard on yourself. Ore-sama knows that you've done your best."

"Usu."

"As expected from my buchou, nothing escapes his notice!" Jirou gushed, entering his fanboy mode.

Himawari looked even more baffled. What were they talking about? Jirou was grinning from ear to ear and it made Himawari truly annoyed since even Jirou (who was notorious for dozing off whenever in a conversation) seemed to know more than she did. She let out a sniffle and then tried her best not to think about this matter anymore, but her hypothalamus was not being cooperative enough and decided to refresh her memory with familiar conversations that she had during the past week.

_Really, this is all for the best…_

_If Atobe was the one who directly ordered Kabaji to stay by your side, then all is fine._

Ah.

Himawari's cheeks flushed as realization dawned on her.

The reason why Kabaji was always at her side.

The reason why the threats suddenly started to stop.

How could she have not noticed it? She berated herself for being stupid enough to not see what was happening. She had always prided herself as an observant and perceptive woman. She may not have the amazing brain of a Sherlock Holmes, but she would at least like to think that her intelligence and sensitivity to the things that were happening around her were above average. Why can't the earth swallow her whole right now? **(5)**

"Ito," Atobe said. "What are you spacing out for? Hurry up and open the door. We are all waiting."

Himawari felt too embarrassed to even think of calling him lazy for ordering her to open the door. She twisted the doorknob and-

"_**SURPRISE!**_"

-confetti and balloons and streamers greeted her as soon as she laid her eyes on the room. The Regulars were all there, as well as some other senior members of the Hyoutei Tennis Club. On one side of the room was a banner that read, "Congratulations, Manager-san!" with the signatures of the members on it.

"Cake, ice cream, spaghetti!" Jirou instantly rushed forward to a long rectangular table where the food and beverages can be found.

"_OI_!" Taki, one of the more disciplined members, roared when he saw the other members dig in. Really, this was Jirou's fault!

"We're sorry if this was late, Himawari-senpai!" Choutarou spoke up, emerging from the small crowd. "The party was supposed to be a week ago, but we needed some more time to distract you. You were always going home early!"

Himawari looked down. She suddenly felt like the worst person that ever existed.

"You like it?" Atobe asked as soon as he stepped inside the room.

"I…" Himawari found her throat to be dry. All this time, she was thinking of how she could benefit from being associated with the tennis club and thinking badly of the team. She felt ashamed and undeserving. They were all nice people, she realized. They should not be doing this for someone like her.

"A smile would do," Atobe answered for her.

The girl blinked, trying to process the information. Then, in understanding, she smiled genuinely for the first time since she joined the Tennis Club.

"Much better," Atobe nodded in satisfaction. For a moment, the Hyoutei King could only gaze at the girl beside him before finally giving his trademark smug smirk, "Even _you_would have to fall for Ore-sama sooner or later."

"Wha-"

Atobe laughed and made his way to the karaoke part of the room, where the other members were belting out 'My Heart will Go On' with so much feeling and passion. Gakuto soon took Himawari's arms and told her that he'll teach her how to break-dance. She immediately refused. Hiyoshi and Shishido were participating in a little game called "Rock, Paper and Scissors," with Hiyoshi gaining the upper hand much to Shishido's dismay. Oshitari was in one corner of the room, immersed in a deep conversation with -GET THIS!- Jirou. All the others were either eating the sumptuous food or chatting with each other. **(6)**

_**Snap!**_

All eyes turned to Atobe, who was holding a microphone on his hand.

"Be awed at the sound of my singing voice!" He declared mightily as cheers and shouts of "ATOBE! ATOBE! ATOBE!" flooded the room. The sound of exuberant laughter and excited giggles vibrated throughout the whole club room as the Hyoutei students busied themselves with merrymaking.

Choutarou went to Himawari to talk to her again, mumbling something about the lack of reasonable people in the room. He had noticed this when some members started vomiting on the polished floor and spinning around the room like fool children.

"Himawari-senpai… Gomen ne…" The tall second year uttered, his tone a bit apologetic. "You know, this party was supposed to be for you but things got more chaotic and…" They turned to the members dancing and then to Atobe who already had a spotlight on him. "…this happened," he finished with a sigh.

Himawari regarded him with a look of great interest. "Why are you the one apologizing, Ohtori-san? Is it really in your nature to worry about people too much?"

The silver-haired boy blushed. Himawari suspected that Ohtori blushed even when he wasn't really embarrassed. "Uhm, I don't know. I've always been this way." He looked down on her. "Why? Is it annoying you, Himawari-san?"

"Not really," Himawari blinked, caught off guard by his question. "I just… Well, I just admire your sincerity in everything I guess."

He nodded, looking quite pleased.

"If I were a little more like you, I think that Atobe-san would like me better," Himawari blurted out, not even knowing what evil spirit possessed her to discuss this matter with Choutarou. Maybe it was because he was a very good listener, and she was sure that he won't be judgmental at all.

"Nonsense Himawari-san!" Choutarou loudly argued. His cheeks turned pink and he said, in a quieter voice, "Atobe-san is a good judge of character. And he values all of the tennis club members equally. I think that the same thing could apply to Himawari-san. You have persevered this past few weeks to prove to him that you could be the manager we were looking for and I know for a fact that Atobe-san doesn't disregard hard work. How can Atobe-san not like you?"

"Well, I don't like him…" Himawari murmured.

Choutarou's eyes widened. "You don't?" When she nodded, he just stared at her blankly. "Oh. Okay."

Himawari wanted to be angry. She just revealed one of her biggest secrets and an indifferent answer was what she got? Ito Himawari wasn't the kind of girl who revealed her weaknesses, but she was expecting that when she would finally do so, the other party might as well have a reaction of epic proportions. She smiled blandly, trying to hide her newfound bitterness for the boy. "You don't seem surprised, Ohtori-san."

"I am!" The silver haired boy waved his hands. "I'm actually _too_ surprised. There are some girls who say that they hate buchou even though they are secretly infatuated with him. But I just never thought that it would possible for a girl to spend a few weeks with Atobe-san and not change her opinions about him. Usually, they'll…" He stopped on his tracks and coughed. "Er, they'll become converted."

The two unconsciously threw a glance at the Hyoutei King who was singing. In German.

Himawari frowned as the words '_Even_you_would have to fall for Ore-sama sooner or later_' thundered her head. Women below the age of one hundred should not be allowed to be near him. If she herself was getting vulnerable, then maybe this manager skit wouldn't turn out to be as great as she initially hoped. In Ohtori's words, she might as well be _converted_.

"I can see why."

It was impossible to not notice the sarcasm on Himawari's voice, but to Choutarou's credit, he just managed to ignore the girl's dry tone and continued, "I hope you won't think ill of me for saying all of these things."

The raven haired girl smiled again in response. "And I hope you won't think any differently of me."

"Atobe-san would like you," Choutarou beamed, his eyes sparkling. "I like you too, Himawari-san, and I hope we could become better friends."

"Shishido-san doesn't seem willing to befriend me though," Himawari pointed out. Among all of the Regulars, it was Shishido who had the unfortunate luck of always seeing Himawari shine in her moments of darkness.

"He'll come around!"

Himawari giggled. If only Atobe could be as sweet and nice as Ohtori Choutarou, then maybe he would really be perfection personified. And maybe she would really go bonkers over him. But Kami-sama is a wise person. Atobe was a prick, and she hated him. She must remind herself that this was _war_ and if she wanted to really impress Atobe and make him change his opinion of her, then she would have to redouble her efforts.

_Although_, Himawari swallowed convulsively, _he seemed to really care about me a while ago_.

She shook her head, deciding to push those thoughts away. Atobe was the enemy! He was the L to her Light, the Draco to her Harry, the Lupin to her Sherlock Holmes, the Persian army to her Spartan forces! She wasn't a heroine in a stupid romance novel! **(7)**

Jirou's deafening voice then interrupted her thoughts.

"WOOO! Atobe! The fireworks you promised! FIREWORRRKKKSSS!"

* * *

The next day, Himawari found herself gaping at a test paper with the grade fifty percent.

_Damn you tennis club freaks!_ Himawari ominously chanted her new mantra inside her head, steam practically coming out of her ears. _Damn you and your party! I just got fifty percent in Trigonometry! Damn you!_

* * *

**(1)**Megane-chan is a cute nickname for girls with glasses

**(2)** Atobe Photoshop is the best photo editing software evah and has been praised by critics all around the world. The only problem is, it has an 'Atobe Recognizer' so you can only edit those photos which include Atobe in it. (SRSLY LOL)

**(3)** Sunbucks is a parody of the largest coffeehouse company in the world. I guess you know which coffeehouse I am talking about… (Don't sue me!)

**(4)** Yare Yare basically means "my my" or "what a hassle" when loosely translated

**(5)** Sherlock Holmes is a well-known detective in the literary world

**(6) **"My Heart Will Go On" is the themesong of the movie "Titanic"

**(7)** Er, all of the characters mentioned in pairs are known for their famous rivalry acts to some extent.

* * *

**AN: **Hey I'm back! Partly because of all the wonderful reviews I got, I managed to upload the latest chapter today! HUZZAH!

Well, actually, there were a lot of parts that I didn't like about this chapter. When can I properly write an interaction between Atobe and Himawari anyway? Sigh. And I apologize for the crappy fight scene! I think my brain was farting while I was writing that part. Oh, and by the way, the 'almost-abduction' scene is so cliché and I so hate it, but it's part of the bigger plot I had in mind. Atobe throwing the manager party was another 'WTF! OOCness characterization' moment, but I would like to think that it gave him an excuse to throw a festive party and at the same time, show how much the tennis team means to him (in the team, when you're the manager, you're like the right hand of the coach/captain). Eh, I'm not making any sense.

And Kabaji, Jirou and Choutarou FTW! LOL! I'll have to make a chappie where the other members can shine too.

Okay, I feel guilty for not replying to those people who reviewed Chapter 4. I actually find it easier to just squeeze my responses in the story itself (IN OTHER WORDS I AM A LAZY GOOD FOR NOTHING AUTHORESS). Hope you do not mind!

**(MyPrinceOishi08**- Thanks for not taking part in the assassination attempt! And yes, it takes a great deal of imagination to think of Himawari and Kabaji getting together. –shudders- **Sweet Ichigo**- Himawari is like Yukino of Kare Kano in some ways, but I don't intend to make her a carbon copy! LOL! Oh, and I know what you mean about Atobe. How come he's so smexy? **BabyKangaroo**- Thanks for the review and I wanna say sorry cause it took me a long time to update! –bows- But hey, I submitted a new chapter in a week's time! **Me want mochi**- Atobe can pull of a magnificent bastard act if he wants to. And when that happens, Himawari would go insane! Haha! **Kuroi and Shiroi**- Oh thanks! Yup, Himawari does mean 'sunflower' but it's really ironic cause Himawari only has a sunny disposition when she's pretending to be the perfect girl. ^.^; **SmartOotori**- Aww, shucks! You're making my head so big! Thanks a lot for the review!**XxMichyBabyxX**- Kabaji is a bit scary, but hey, he's the closest thing to a bestfriend that Atobe can have! I think… -coughs- Don't worry though, there'll no more Kabaji moments in the future for you! **u know**- Hi there girl! You're the mastermind of all of this! This fic is all your fault! Wafufufufu! **SweetSugarPuppy**- Yeah, we don't get to hang around anymore. –near to tears- I'll try to drop by from time if I have the time though! Thanks for your continuing support, couz! **Schnuppi**- I'm updating! I'm updating! See? Hehe! XD **)**

I'll bribe the readers: Every reviewer gets an Atobe Photoshop Extended SC3! –gets whipped- Okay, not really! Sigh!


	6. The Manager is a Converted

**"Managerial Mayhem"**

**SUMMARY: **Wanted! A manageress for Hyoutei's Tennis Club. Applicant? Ito Himawari, an ambitious girl who wants to be anything but normal. What to expect: Headaches, sore legs, angry fangirls, flying tennis balls, and maybe even… love?

**DISCLAIMER:** The Prince of Tennis was created by Konomi Takeshi. As usual, the characters in the franchise do not belong to me and belong to their respective owner(s). Aside from the characters I create, I do not mean to infringe on any current copyrights on the series. Thank you and have fun reading!

* * *

**CHAPTER SIX: The Manager is a Converted**

"Θα μπορούσα εύκολα συγχωρήστε μου την υπερηφάνεια, αν δεν είχε ορυχείο..."

"Ah, Greek!" The raven haired girl spoke in a tone tailored for the role of a drama queen. "Why cannot we get along?"

Recently, Himawari's grades did not reach her usual standards. Her trigonometry teacher, unsatisfied with her performance, asked her to come see him inside the teacher's lounge. When she got there, he was direct to the point and asked her if there was something that bothered her. He was aware of her new position as the manager of the tennis club and advised her to withdraw from club activities to concentrate on school work.

"_You see, Ito-chan," Fujioka-sensei said quietly as he met Himawari's eyes. "I think that tennis club isn't doing you any good. You're way better than that. Think of your future."_

_She kept her face stoic. She didn't know Fujioka-sensei was against the tennis club. There weren't many who were._

"_I think I can juggle my time, sensei. I'm merely adjusting. Pretty soon, I'll be back to normal."_

"_I wouldn't be too sure if I were you," he warned as he turned back to his laptop. "You're not Atobe after all." _

That conversation was a big slap to the face. It was an even bigger slap to her ego.

Himawari then resolved to climb back on top. In fact, she traded her precious lunchtime with Yuki today just for an hour to secretly study Greek in the library. Himawari loudly sighed in frustration, her chin resting on a propped elbow. Lying in front of her were numerous papers and documents, as well as an open notebook.

Oh, and don't forget about the Greek dictionary. The battered and worn-out Greek dictionary, that is.

But hey, things were going great. Her homework was finished. Hurray! Her paperworks were finished. Hurray!

"Ito!"

Her most hated person on the planet is going to be finished… HURRAY!

In times like this though, one can blame the trick of the light. No one in Hyoutei spends their lunch break on the library, and she had already spent a good amount of time in the library to know for certain that His Pompous Majesty never sets foot on the library during these hours. So what the hell was Atobe doing here?

No sense in not asking.

"What the he- Arhem!" She coughed when she realized that she would become neither demure nor proper if she was ever to continue with what she was going to say. The perfect girl façade then returned back in full force. "Hmm, I mean what brings you here, Atobe-san?"

Atobe Keigo, looking as devastatingly handsome as ever, merely smirked at the girl, "Japan is a free country, Ito."

"A common knowledge to everyone," Himawari answered back, leaning back and widening her fake smile.

"So why were you asking?"

Himawari shrugged lightly, her raven locks momentarily caressing her shoulders when she effortlessly swayed. "The library does not seem to be the right place for you to be spotted around, Atobe-san. If you were in your private study in the second floor, or in the Student Council Meeting Room, then I would not be surprised; it only fits your regal image after all." She tapped her chin and then brightened before his very eyes. "Ah, but the tennis courts is the place where you shine the most of course!"

Another lie and another empty compliment, Atobe recognized. It was one of those traits that he immediately disliked about her, and while it would give him tremendous satisfaction to bite her off with one of his signature dry remarks, he wasn't going to let her have the upper hand in this verbal battle.

'_Two could play at this game._'

His lips were set in a straight, grim line, but he managed to say, "Ore-sama is here because Ore-sama wants to see you."

"Me?" Himawari repeated in mock surprise. She laughed and then dismissively waved a hand in the air. "How funny, Atobe-san! Surely the day isn't so quiet that you can find no other occupation than seeking my company?" Hurriedly, she added, "Besides, I'm sure I'll just bore you to tears."

"You could never bore me, Ito Himawari," Atobe responded smoothly.

Surprisingly the Hyoutei king found himself enjoying this somehow odd battle of retorts with Himawari. He studied the girl as she rewarded his fun-seeking side with a look of pure disbelief.

The raven haired girl had her mouth dropped wide open. Had someone turned up an oven or heater in here or what? Did Atobe just use one of his ladykiller moves on _her_? Of all people? Well, for some it would be a huge privilege and it's like living a FRICKING fangirl's dream… But that was the problem! She's NO FRICKING FANGIRL! Her lips wobbled as she tried to think of a glorious comeback.

Too late for her though. Atobe grabbed a chair and sat beside her, giving her an indulgent smile and looking terribly relaxed and comfortable on his seat. "Ore-sama thinks that we need to talk."

Quick! She had to find a way to distract him!

"Ohoho!" Himawari quickly darted her hand towards the Greek dictionary on the table. "Unfortunately, as much as I want to converse with you, Atobe-san, I have a lot of homework to do. Now, if you'll excuse me-"

"You are also taking up Greek?" Atobe suddenly asked as he snatched Himawari's notebook. He elegantly raised one of his brows, making him one of the few people Himawari knew who could do that with relative ease. "How surprising…" he murmured absently while he scanned the notebook's contents.

"It seems like an interesting language," Himawari cautiously replied, trying to keep her voice even.

"It is," Atobe agreed, before turning back to his female companion and smugly smirking, "though Ore-sama thinks that you still need a lot of work since your Greek translation is laughable at most."

Himawari's owllike eyes widened even more. She wanted to kill him so badly! Atobe's murder would probably result to a manhunt, courtesy of Atobe's rabid fangirls, but at least her heart would be at peace! She suddenly craned her head to _finally_ get a good look at Atobe, trying to decide which side of his perfect nose could better take a punch.

"Aan~?" The Hyoutei buchou leveled his gaze at the girl too. "Why are you looking at Ore-sama like that, Ito?"

She blinked.

_Damn, better think of a good excuse!_

"My apologies, Atobe-san. I was merely, er, admiring your handsome visage!"

"You aren't the first one to become awestruck by Ore-sama's unearthly beauty."

"Surely I cannot argue with that, Atobe-san."

An awkward silence filled the library. Himawari offered Atobe a tight smile, which Atobe returned with another raised eyebrow. When the tension between the two of them became thick enough to double as a brick wall, Atobe unexpectedly leaned towards the raven haired girl and narrowed his eyes.

"Tell Ore-sama," his voice grew serious, his hot breath tickling her face. "Why did you want to become a manager? Ore-sama agreed to let you in because of your potential, but one could only get so far without having to actually be _passionate_. So why? To chase around the tennis club members? Aan~? Or maybe," Atobe's right hand found itself cupping her soft cheek. "you just want to hog the spotlight and get the fame all for yourself?"

A vein popped on Himawari's forehead. '_Breathe, breathe! Don't let him get to you… IMPROVISE!'_

"I believe," Himawari finally answered through gritted teeth while she slapped away Atobe's hand. "that you are the one guilty of wanting the spotlight all for yourself, _Atobe_." '_MUST! DISINFECT! MY CHEEK!'_

"Not so formal now, I see," Atobe stroked his chin.

"Not speaking in third person now, I see," Himawari spat back, but not without a bitter smile.

Atobe frowned considerably. Sometimes, just _sometimes_, when he was in deep thought or immersed in something else, he would forget to proclaim 'Ore-sama' and then replace it with the more common (-and don't forget NORMAL!) personal pronoun 'I.' Huh. At least she was listening. Feeling mildly entertained, Atobe smiled as his expression then became more predatory. "Ore-sama heard that your popularity skyrocketed after joining the team."

Himawari didn't bulge. Her pride was on the line here. "My, my. The club taking credit for my improving social status? That's new, Atobe-san."

Atobe didn't back down. His massive ego wouldn't let him do so. "Luckily for you Ito, most people can be likened to sheep; where one goes, the rest follow. You should get down on your knees and thank Ore-sama that you finally got your own lovestruck suitors. It wouldn't have been possible without the team's endorsement."

"Thanks, but no thanks," she pleasantly answered back as she drummed a finger on the table. "I'm not interested. Most especially if they follow _you_ as their leader sheep."

Fighting the sudden urge to break into a grin, Atobe rewarded the smiling girl with another observant look. She was good. And quite _shrewd_. Except for his mother, there weren't a lot of women out there who were quite adept in matching his wit and conversing with him on equal footing. Himawari was… well, she's different from most women. He felt it that time too, when she walked in his office for the first time. There was drive in her eyes, and he could tell that she wanted to fight fire with fire.

_Ha!_ The playful devil inside Atobe sneered. _As if Ore-sama will let you._

His lips curved into a wicked smile, and Himawari inwardly gulped. Did someone here raise the temperature up again? She knew that smile and that was the kind of smile that Atobe must have used to win the adoration of legions of women. Squirming on her seat, she began to look for an avenue of escape.

'_This scenario is so familiar_,' she thought miserably as she remembered her interview inside Atobe's private study.

"What's wrong?"

"I…" She bit her tongue. She _actually _bit her tongue. "I just think it's a bit warm in here. Don't you think so?"

He didn't say anything else.

Which only infuriated Himawari even more.

"What I mean is," Himawari faced the diva of Hyoutei determinedly and fanned herself for added effect. "I think that the air conditioning needs some work. But it's probably just me…"

He didn't respond again. Hyoutei's manager wanted to Kamehame wave him into oblivion for this, but unfortunately, reality needed to be unkind and smack her hard on the face.

Sigh.

"Ito, it probably isn't just you; Ore-sama feels it too." As he turned to her with his legendary heavy-lidded stare, something washed over Himawari. She did not know what it was, but it made her feel numb and uneasy.

"Uh, o-okay," she flushed and then pursed her lips, her face contorted in embarrassment.

Atobe studied her horrified face, closely enough to make her want to migrate to Mars, and then he erupted into a smile. "You… You fell for it?" he said slowly, sounding _too_ happy for Himawari's liking. "You actually fell for it! What a pity, Ito, what a pity. Ore-sama made the mistake of overestimating you."

"WHY YOU!" Before she could continue any further, she clamped her mouth shut and then balled her fists. It wouldn't be as satisfying as the castration of one Atobe Keigo, but murder in broad daylight wouldn't be good for her image anyway.

"Did you honestly think that Ore-sama was trying to seduce you?"

She raised her chin defiantly at once.

"The library," he drawled. "isn't the best stage for Ore-sama's seduction."

"I know," the girl responded sarcastically. Anything that had to do with academic ranks and homeworks and stupid Greek translations were now all thrown out of the window. "Because if you do this kind of thing everyday in anywhere public, a crazy fangirl might pop out from nowhere and abduct you. And wouldn't that be a crying shame?"

The response of the Hyoutei buchou was not exactly what Himawari was looking for. Atobe's elegant features gradually turned darker. The captain shifted his seating position, allowing her to quizzically stare at him. "Ah, that reminds Ore-sama of an important issue he needs to address." He looked at her. "Are you acquainted with someone whose name is '_Reina_?'"

"_Reina_?" Himawari parroted. Baffled, Himawari just shook her head. "No, I do not think so, Atobe-san."

"I see…" Atobe was back to looking thoughtful with –is he hot or what?- his fingers rubbing his chin and his deep blue eyes misting over and-

_RED LIGHTS! _

**STOP!**

Himawari inwardly shook her head. Ha! As if she was gonna fall for that one _again._ Besides, that _Reina _person was probably Atobe's fangirl of the day.

"Well, that matter aside, Ore-sama would move to something with higher priority and far greater importance. And that is _tennis_," Himawari sighed. Finally. Something that actually had to do with her position. Though it was very unsettling that Atobe abruptly changed the topic of their discussion, Himawari _definitely _ preferred this one better.

"The upcoming Regulars Selection Tournament will start next week and there is a lot of preparation waiting to be done. Many members have tremendously improved, but that does not mean that they are qualified enough to challenge the current team members for a match. The club members, numbering up to two hundred and more, needs to be thoroughly assessed and screened before they can actually take part in the tournament. A total of thirty-two players are acceptable, provided that those who are chosen would be up for the challenge."

Oh goody. More documents waiting to be arranged. Less time for her to study!

"Well, it's your duty as the club manger to relay this sort of information anyway, especially in a club like this one, so Ore-sama supposes that you would find little difficulty in the task. Or is Ore-sama supposed to believe otherwise?"

'_You're not Atobe after all.'_

The raven haired girl plastered a saccharine smile in response as Fujioka-sensei's harsh words rang inside her head in a torturous symphony. She was not going to fail this challenge.

"Consider the job done."

There was silence.

Whether it was because he wanted to mock her or express his admiration, Himawari didn't know. But she knew that he caught her off guard when he smiled benignly at her, his next words laced with unrestrained approval.

"That's my girl."

The sudden resonance of the ringing school bell then echoed throughout the whole Hyoutei grounds.

* * *

Eavesdroppers.

No matter what you do, you can be sure that anywhere you go, they'll be there. Hyoutei, in particular, had an abundant supply of them.

"Hee hee!" Gakuto was snickering. "An afternoon rendezvous with our manager? So sly!"

Gakuto's laughter was very grating and irksome, but Atobe chose not to respond. Unluckily for our Hyoutei King, Gakuto's partner-in-crime was also there. "Sooo Atobe… Himawari-chan is now the lucky girl?" The tensai was beaming at him with unmistakable –_oh merciful heavens above_!- paternal pride.

"You two idiots are giving this matter a great deal of unnecessary thought. Ore-sama not-so-humbly requests you to keep your dirty thoughts to yourself and stay out of this topic. That is, if you ever wish to stay on Ore-sama's good side."

Many students enjoyed having their lunches on the cafeteria and the well-kept lawns of Hyoutei Gakuen, so he thought that it would be safe to approach Himawari at this time of the day. How was he supposed to know that the Dirty Pair was expertly hidden two bookshelves away from them because of a 'book report' that they claim needs to be done?

It was a good thing that Himawari sped off at the speed of light after the school bell rang.

"I don't know," the acrobatics tennis player didn't look fazed at all. "I mean, we are in the mood for romance cause Yuushi is reading this weird vampire novel thing! You know? _Twilight_?"

Atobe gave the book Oshitari was currently holding a long and disinterested look. He's heard of this book, and he tried his best to read it too just to know what the whole craze was all about. Much to Atobe's disappointment, however, the book did not fit his standards because in comparison to Homer and Goethe, it was nothing but literary trash.

Oshitari lazily stretched his arms outwards. "Jealous of Edward Cullen, Atobe?"

The trademarked (-yes! It's true!) Atobe Glare™ was rising in varying high degrees in temperature as he glowered, yet he tried his best to not respond in exactly the way Oshitari wanted him to. "This Edward Cullen is a despicable bloodsucking creature with a two dimensional character," Atobe spoke briskly as the two turned to him with raised eyebrows. "He is not real and Ore-sama is. Ore-sama is then victorious. End of discussion."

"He can read minds."

"…Oshitari, Ore-sama recommends you to stop talking nonsense if you ever wish for Ore-sama to believe that your sanity is still intact," the Hyoutei King managed to say after a minute or so of scrutinizing his companion.

The tensai tapped his heart with his right hand. "Wounded," he said flippantly. "And right through the heart."

Atobe glared at Oshitari again. When Gakuto made a sound that sort of resembled a snort, he gave him a murderous look too.

"Che! You're no fun!" Gakuto threw his hands up in the air.

"That's not nice, Atobe," Oshitari pushed his glasses up to the bridge of his pointed nose. "Hurting Gakuto's feelings. Besides, I'm sure Himawari-chan would not mind if we would talk about her."

"Since when did you become on first name basis with Ito?" The buchou of Hyoutei asked, but then he mentally slapped himself because deep down he knew what the answer was.

"Yuushi here is always on first name basis with any girl," Gakuto stated, sniffing in disdain. "As long as the person wears a skirt, he would not mind. He's a womanizer like that."

Among the Hyoutei tennis team members, Oshitari Yuushi was the one notorious for being the resident skirt chaser. But he succeeds where most lechers fail because he possessed a certain suaveness that attracted girls to him. Because of this, Gakuto coined the term "chivalrous pervert" for his partner. In fact, when Shishido boldly asked Oshitari how many bases he went with his current conquest, Oshitari only smiled broadly and cheekily replied, "Base? How does '_flower base'_ sound to you?"

Needless to say, Shishido turned all shades of red and dashed off to who knows where after that interesting discussion.

"You are being quite rude, Gakuto," Oshitari crossed his arms over his chest. "Besides, Himawari-chan isn't just an ordinary girl. There's certainly more to her than what meets the eye. She is definitely hiding something from us. Ne, Atobe?"

"Ore-sama thinks of her as an efficient manager that he cannot afford to lose at this crucial time, but just like every other girl, she can be a nuisance to Ore-sama."

"Are you by any chance talking about the incident that happened the other day?" Oshitari coyly asked, earning him another glare from one scowling Atobe Keigo. Right now the Kansai tensai was in a good mood. He had that muted, calculating look in his eyes that he wore when he had something up his sleeve. "Atobe, it would be best if you learn not to underestimate my information network. I'm not called a tensai for nothing you know."

Gakuto just looked oblivious. "What are you two discussing?"

"My suspicions first grew when you ordered Kabaji to accompany Himawari everyday. Then it got the curious side of me thinking, '_Since when did you ever let Kabaji follow someone around other than yourself?_' Not to mention that you purposely had a hand in the scandalous rumor of Himawari dating Kabaji. It did not make enough sense," Oshitari paused long enough to look intently at Atobe. "And then it all became clear when Jirou talked to me during the party last evening and shared to me about an incident involving Himawari-chan not too long ago."

As usual, it would take something a little more substantial than Oshitari Yuushi's reasoning to daunt the captain of Hyoutei. "Lovely deduction, Oshitari. But for your own good, Ore-sama would kindly recommend that you stop interfering with other people's business."

"This matter involves Himawari-chan, who is a part of the tennis club I belong in," Oshitari cut in. "Do you think that I am the kind of person who would just sit around on the sidelines while things are starting to get thrilling?"

Pregnant silence pierced the air. The Hyoutei King and the Kansai tensai were having a tennis match of glowers and no one was winning at all. Gakuto, meanwhile, pouted as he muttered about how he hated being out of the loop.

"Very well, Oshitari. We'll have it your way," Atobe reluctantly grumbled. He knew that there was no stopping Oshitari once he started sticking his nose into something. "The attack that happened the other day, there is no doubt that it was not just an accident. It was carefully planned. And as the Hyoutei Supreme Student Council President, Ore-sama is committed to bringing the truth to light while being as discreet about it as possible. As you all know, a student attack would raise suspicions and cause a panic in the student community."

Oshitari and Gakuto were hanging on to Atobe's every words.

"Ore-sama asked the guards to question the assailants and what their motives were. As it turned out, a person going by the name _Reina_ paid them generously for their act."

"_Reina_?" Gakuto parroted, eyes widening. "A woman?"

Oshitari's eyebrows furrowed. "That is a big possibility. After all, _Reina_ doesn't sound like a manly name, does it?" The tensai arched his neck slightly to look at Atobe. "So? Did you ever find out the identity of this_Reina_ person?"

"Himawari was a specific target. They did confess that _Reina_ only paid them to scare off the girl though. They were the ones who wanted to go… _far_." Atobe tapped his foot impatiently, looking a bit, hmm, cross? 'Unfortunately, this _Reina _person had enough brains to think of hiring those thugs from the internet. They met online and _Reina _sent them a large amount of money in advance so that there would be an assurance that more money would be waiting for them if they did the job right."

"It sounds pretty serious…" Oshitari placed a hand on his chin, looking truly concerned. "Were it not for Kabaji and Jirou's timely rescue, Himawari-chan would've gotten seriously hurt. Or worse." He didn't have to emphasize the last word for the other two to get what he meant.

"If you ask me," Gakuto butted in because he obviously wanted to take part in the discussion. "I think that it's very likely that a girl who's jealous of Himawari paid them to attack her. It doesn't take a genius to figure that out!"

"Gakuto, it could be as you say. Certainly, there is a mystery surrounding this person's identity and it might take some time before we can unravel it. Ore-sama needs to resolve this situation soon. However, Ore-sama also feels that this _Reina _person won't go down easily."

"Oh?" Now Oshitari looked amused. "And how could you be so sure of that?"

Atobe smirked haughtily, and turned away, but not before looking at Oshitari straight in the eye. "Because Ore-sama cannot be wrong."

Gakuto and Oshitari watched Atobe's retreating back.

"He could always drop her out of the club," said Gakuto as he wrinkled his nose.

The tensai's response was a musical laugh. "He won't do that."

"What do you mean?"

Now Oshitaru looked not only serious, but also contemplative. Gakuto waited for him to speak, and when he did, the confidence in his voice was unchallenged, "It's obvious isn't it? Atobe thinks Himawari-chan is great to be around."

* * *

Himawari shot her eyes open while she gasped for breath. A hand moved by its own to her chest as another one wiped the sweat on her forehead. She tried to stretch her lethargic limbs to check for the time on her alarm clock when-

'_That's my girl.'_

-a certain image saying that certain line thundered inside her head again. She grumbled and dove under the covers of her comforter, her fingernails digging deeper and deeper into her pillows.

Doing what all reasonably mature girls do whenever they have problems, Himawari twisted like a worm on her bed and made a complete mess out of it. The thwapping noises and the sudden creak of springs were suddenly music to the girl's ears. Suddenly it was clear that sleeping was not on tonight's agenda…

"Baka! Baka!" She berated herself, her teeth gritted in annoyance. She wanted to hit herself for thinking of Atobe Keigo. "Get out of my mind!"

After a few more minutes of bed destruction, the girl then decided to lie on her back, apparently too exhausted to turn and toss on her bed anymore. Instead, she preferred to stare at the ceiling in an utterly still yet mortified manner. The droning sound inside her head was enough to keep her awake, even if she wanted to badly sleep. She swallowed as a horrible feeling made its way through her gut again.

'_That's my girl.'_

_GAH! That's the fifty-fifth time I recalled his words!_

She mentally scolded herself again, since the one thing even more disturbing than her rewinding again and again in her head Atobe's words was the fact that she was actually counting _how many times_ she remembered Atobe's voice. And every time she relieved it, the voice in her memory grew even sharper, more overwhelming, and more certain of its claim.

If this keeps up, Himawari was pretty sure that she would turn to one of those awful creatures- the kind of girls who fluttered and swooned every time a boy from the tennis team would move a muscle on their well-toned bodies. The kind of girls who gossiped and talked and chattered about how hot and how perfect the Regulars were. The kind of girls who saw Atobe not as a mere human being, but as a revered god who must be worshipped at all times.

_**Them.**_ (Insert the sound of a screeching truck here)

Pretty soon, she would be in absolute contrast to the role she was supposed to represent. She wanted to be known as the perfect school girl, the kind of female who had the deadly mix of beauty, brains and refinement. If she suddenly reverted to a lovestruck fangirl, what would happen to her dreams?

No matter what happens, she must not lose sight of her goal!

'_That is it!'_ Himawari bolted straight up, eyes wide at the realization. Atobe clearly did not like her, at least not in _that_ way, so why was he suddenly all sweet and sugary with her? Obviously, he was merely _pretending_ to get along with her so he can find her faults and then mercilessly kick her out. He probably wanted to show her the difference between the one who was dominant and the one who was just a servant. After all, Atobe seemed like the kind of jerk who would do that.

The more Himawari reasoned this out to herself, the more it made sense. How foolish of her to take the bait. It was all probably part of his diabolical plan! Everything was a set-up!

A _honey trap_!

Enlightened by her own psychological analysis, Himawari's eyes started to burn with intense passion. With quick movements, she hastily lifted the covers of her bed and grabbed a dart (-what the!) lying next to her lampshade. She turned to a particularly dark corner of her room and let out a battle cry.

"UGH! I HATE YOU ATOBE KEIGO!"

The photo of Atobe Keigo that was pinned on the wall (-double wtf!) suddenly lost an eye.

* * *

Atobe snapped his eyes open in shock. Instinctively, he glanced at the table mirror and gave a relieved sigh. For some reason, he dreamt of being struck by a twelve foot long pin.

By Ito Himawari.

"How dare that girl invade Ore-sama's sleeping moments?" Atobe said to no one in particular. Most of his dreams were about him being assured of his place in the world. Finally succeeding his father, dominating the world of tennis and ushering in a new era in business not just in Japan, but all around the globe were not uncommon in his dreams. But alas, here comes the ambitious Himawari, waltzing around in his dream and proclaiming her eternal hatred towards him.

He shook his head, trying to set aside that thought. It was probably another random dream- don't most people get them all the time?- and it was probably just a product of his sleep-deprived condition. There was nothing symbolic nor prophetic about Ito Himawari dressed in a witch's attire, a gigantic pin by her side. Besides, he was probably just too disoriented after falling asleep on his desk.

(_Still, the triumphant grin on Dream!Himawari's face was not a good premonition._)

Shuddering slightly, Atobe crossed over the room and laid down on the bed, covering himself with his silk blankets. Perhaps sleeping on the mattress will help change things…

* * *

"BREAKFAST, BUTA-CHAAAAAN!"

Himawari kicked open the wooden door of her room, revealing pigeon-pecked hair. She scratched her face absently as she yawned loudly.

Ito Tomohisa gasped, his hands flying to his open mouth in horror. "B-Buta-chan! What happened to you?"

"Nothing, Papa," Himawari mumbled, suppressing another yawn. "I just took care of a monkey with the largest head in the world."

"You like taking care of monkeys?" If possible, Tomohisa looked even more alarmed.

"Ignore me!" This time, Himawari tried to suppress a groan. Her father was strangely childlike in a number of ways. '_Taking care of monkeys, huh? Then I'm the Monkey King's handler. How convenient.'_She chuckled warmly inside her head.

"Don't talk back, young lady!" Tomohisa dramatically announced, inserting a certain amount of flair and drama in his speech. "Buta-chan, buta-chan! You're sixteen already. You'll be seventeen next week! Do you really think that it would be appropriate for your age to have imaginary friends? Especially _monkey friends_? I do remember you having a quarrel with your friend Winnie the Pooh a long time ago! Well, in any case, it might be better if-"

As Himawari's father continued his monologue, Himawari just put placed her hands over her ears and quickly headed downstairs. '_Someone please put a restraint order on my father, pronto.'_

"Anyway, this imaginary football-headed monkey is surely just the side effect of your all-nighters. If only you'll get a boyfriend then-"

Tomohisa's grand speech was, regrettably, lost on Himawari's ears as she plotted some even more elaborate schemes inside her head to bring down Atobe Keigo once and for all. A dark aura overtook her body as she proceeded to cackle maniacally as if there was no tomorrow.

Until she comically fell down the stairs.

Silly girl.

* * *

**NOTES:**

-"Θα μπορούσα εύκολα συγχωρήστε μου την υπερηφάνεια, αν δεν είχε ορυχείο" can be directly translated as "I could easily forgive his pride, if he had not mortified mine" and it came from the great novel **Pride and Prejudice**. And nope, I do not know Greek. Just used an online translator (that's not _that_ reliable anyway).

-Yes, Atobe is also the Student Council President in Hyoutei. Just like Tezuka-buchou. LOL. Of course, he insists on calling it "Supreme Student Council."

-For Oshitari, reading romance novels is serious business. This is CANON folks!

-Twilight is mostly about the forbidden love story between a fragile human being and a near-to-perfect vampire. Atobe thinks of the book as "sinfully boring" while Oshitari has a not-so-secret EdwardXBella shrine on his closet. XD

-TRIVIA: Himawari has a dart set at home.

-Ito Tomohisa is Himawari's highly energetic father. Get to know more about him in the next chapter.

-"Buta-chan" means "Piggy-chan." If you've watched Naruto, you would know that Sakura calls Ino "buta" or "pig" just to vex the blonde. Himawari got the nickname because… Well, you better read more to find out. Hehe…

* * *

**AN:** Hey, hey! I'm done! Whew! This chapter took a lot of work, not because of the story, but because I don't know how to organize it. The original concept was only to show Atobe and Himawari's interaction, but then it branched out from there because the chapter was sooo short… So I made it longer! Then it reached 8000 words so I had to, er, cut it. Then I had to rewrite some more and then… Well. You get it.

Who is Reina? Well, I'm gonna introduce a few OC characters later and if you're quite the detective, you might guess Reina's identity correctly. Of course, I'll be dropping some hints too. Hehehe! –evil grin-

BTW, while writing this, I was watching the Korean version of Hana Yori Dango so my writing style in this Chappie might be influenced by that show. Erm, gomen? Readers are always free to complain and criticize me for a job badly done. –whimpers- Also, I decided to change the endnotes since my friend thinks that it looks neater this way. BUT! If you find the endnotes in the previous chapters better, be free to tell me.

**BabyKangaroo:** Haha! Himawari fumes a lot in this chapter too! **XxMichyBabyxX:**Oh definitely! It's not your fault that Atobe-sama's too sexy for his own good and you had to ogle at his awesomeness… Oops? Hehe! XD **Rin-chii:** Jirou is such a cute character! Thanks for reading my fc! –hugs- **rebekahalana:** Thanks for reading Chapter 5! About your question, well… Technically, Draco should be Harry's rival but there are some more comparisons between Cedric and Harry that made me think of Cedric as Harry's rightful rival. For example, both are exceptional students and at that time, somehow romantically involved with Cho Chang. Oh, and PROF MORIARTY! Drats! I knew I have forgotten someone! Sorry for the mistake…-bows- **cooties n' screams:**Whew! It's the first time I made someone giggle! Halleluiah! **Schnuppi:**Here ya go! A new Chappie all done and ready! –boogies- **Tallyism:** Himawari's a fun character to write actually. Oh, and I might try watching Skip Beat in the future. If I'll like the manga, I might try the anime. **Lol**- Himawari _is_ evil. But Atobe can always make her zip her mouth. Hehe…

That's it! Thanks and enjoy!


	7. The Manager is a Spy

**"Managerial Mayhem"**

**SUMMARY: **Wanted! A manageress for Hyoutei's Tennis Club. Applicant? Ito Himawari, an ambitious girl who wants to be anything but normal. What to expect: Headaches, sore legs, angry fangirls, flying tennis balls, and maybe even… love?

**DISCLAIMER:** The Prince of Tennis was created by Konomi Takeshi. As usual, the characters in the franchise do not belong to me and belong to their respective owner(s). Aside from the characters I create, I do not mean to infringe on any current copyrights on the series. Thank you and have fun reading!

* * *

**CHAPTER SEVEN: The Manager is a Spy**

The Hyoutei tennis court today was a fluttering mass of activity. It always was, of course, but there was a certain air of franticness that hang over it this particular day. After all, the ever-famous tennis club was holding a practice match with some school named Karahawa and it was clear to everyone with two eyes that they were _dominating_.

"GAME! 5-2! Change court!" The referee's voice pierced through the air.

"Aan~?" Atobe was sitting on something that looked too expensive to be a bench. He was watching the practice match with subtle disinterest. "It looks like Karahawa isn't that much of a threat after all. Disappointing."

Gakuto whistled then smirked, "Yeah, Choutarou's really on fire today. Look how he's pulverizing the team's captain!"

"Manners, Mukahi, manners," Oshitari reminded his doubles partner. "Their captain is quite good too. After all, he _did_win two games."

The practice match started innocently enough. Karahawa brought the big guns right away and sent their strongest players to the tennis battlefield. Meanwhile, Atobe selected a few non-regulars, plus Choutarou and Hiyoshi, to meet their opponents. Hyoutei lost on the first doubles match, but quickly regained momentum when they got back on their feet and won the next matches. The Captain, who was supposed to graciously accept defeat, demanded that he play a match against Atobe Keigo. His request merely fell on deaf ears.

_"You want to play a match with Ore-sama, aan~?" He cockily remarked at the captain. "Prove your worth then."_

And that was the reason why Karahawa's captain was now struggling to win in his match against one of Hyoutei's star members.

"Ikyuunyuukon!_"_ Choutarou said as he positioned himself and gave the Karahawa captain a healthy dose of the Neo Scud Serve. The ball went flying across the court and though Choutarou's opponent managed to _slightly_ return the ball, his serve was so weak that it didn't even make it past the net.

"Game and match to Hyoutei's Ohtori Choutarou! Six games to two!"

Loud proclamations of Hyoutei's greatness erupted as the rival school's captain cried, er, manly tears.

"ATOBE-SAMA! ATOBE-SAMA!"

Himawari cocked her head and turned to the mammoth crowd of women surrounding the tennis court. They all had matching golden brooches pinned on the collar of their school uniforms. Obviously, they were members of Atobe's Fanclub. She refrained from rolling her eyes.

"Of course, ladies everywhere can't seem to get enough of Ore-sama," Atobe flicked his hair. Himawari saw him do that countless of times before ever since she became Hyoutei's manager. For her, it was one thing for a girl to take pride in her hair, but a guy? The "diva" must be coming out of the closet. "Ore-sama should go and expose them to my glorious presence."

"Of course Atobe-san!" Himawari brightly chirped as she focused her energy on giving a radiant smile. As Atobe went off to mingle with his lovestruck fangirls, Himawari pointedly glared at his back. Another black aura started to slowly leak around her. Her eyes twitched when she saw a bold female clutch Atobe's arm and place it between her chest. She snorted in disapproval.

'_Why can't the Atobe Fanclub be renamed Atobe's Harem? Hmm…'_

"Oi, Himawari?" Shishido's voice broke Himawari's reverie.

"Why hello Shishido-san!" Himawari turned around so fast that Shishido thought that she might lose her balance. "What brings you here?"

On his part, Shishido couldn't help but feel that their new manager might indeed be possessed or something.

"Shishido-senpai just wants to know when the next practice match would be," Choutarou helpfully supplied when it was clear to him that his doubles partner wasn't going to respond. He didn't know why, but Shishido always seemed to be uncomfortable around Himawari-senpai when it was clear to him that their new manager was a very cheerful and responsible person. Shishido even insisted on saying that Himawari was surrounded by "a vaguely noticeable dark aura" and warned him of her. Really, Shishido-senpai could be so paranoid!

"Ah, the next practice match?" parroted Himawari as she gave another one of her infamous smiles. "We'll probably have to wait for a few more weeks. Atobe-san and I are still making arrangements."

When Choutarou saw her facial expression, he turned to his senpai with a look that could be read as '_See? She's not so bad!_'

In return, Shishido gave his junior a '_What are you talking about? She's clearly insane_!' kind of glare.

Himawari didn't say anything else. She was having too much fun watching these two stare at each other. Now, Himawari did not know if the two were busy telepathically connecting their minds, hearts and souls or if they were just demonstrating the proverbial "losing one's self when looking at a certain person's eyes," but she was enjoying herself nonetheless since it was a rare form of entertainment.

"OHTORI-SAMA!"

Everyone then stopped on their tracks. The voice was loud and annoyingly ear-piercing that it was impossible for anyone to ignore it.

"Ah!" A girl wearing an unfamiliar uniform squeaked as she shyly placed a hand on her mouth. "I'm like, _soooo _sorry! I just wanted to get Ohtori-sama's attention."

"Way to make an entrance," Himawari heard Gakuto say from behind her.

Her emerald eyes scanned the crowd. When her eyes landed on her target, she didn't even have a moment's hesitation as she sprang animatedly to pounce (yes, the most accurate term is pounce) on her victim, bringing to mind how a cheetah would catch his prey.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING WOMAN?" It was Shishido who looked scandalized by it all. Choutarou was far too much of a gentleman to protest or shove her away and he suddenly felt the need to demand an explanation from this woman.

Especially after _this_.

Especially after she had jumped on Choutarou and made the poor boy land on the ground while she was on top of him. (Hmm. Er, yummy?)

"Hiyoshi," Oshitari broke into a Cheshire Cat grin. "Take a picture of _that_ pose."

"Right," Hiyoshi obliged since he always had a handy dandy disposable camera with him in the first place. He wasn't part of the newspaper club for nothing.

"Yes, Ore-sama also wants to know what is going on," Himawari's heart jumped ten feet up in the air when Atobe suddenly appeared out of nowhere beside her.

"Of course!" The girl stood up and let out a giddy schoolgirl laugh. "I'm like, a student at Sakurahana High and I'm like, Ohtori-sama's biggest fan ever! I've always wanted to meet him and I'm like, so caught up in the moment that I didn't know what I was doing even though I'm, like, so totally in love with Ohtori-sama and-"

"Stop," Atobe raised a hand in front of the girl's face. "You are not making sense."

"I think you should also get off of Choutarou-san," Himawari pointed out.

"Ah! I'm sorry, I'm totally sorry! I really didn't mean it! Like, totally!" The girl cried out when she realized that she was standing on top of the very same person she just proclaimed was her loved one. She tried to help Choutarou but Shishido roughly pushed her aside and pulled Choutarou away from the girl.

"Hey! That was so, like, totally rude!" The girl proceeded to put her hands on her slim waist.

"Ooh! Rude! Totally rude!" Gakuto mocked as he imitated the girl's style of speaking. Chuckles erupted from the crowd.

"Maybe you should first introduce yourself to us," Oshitari suddenly interrupted before a battle to the death between Shishido and the mystery girl could commence. "I do not recall you telling us your name, Miss."

"Like, I totally forgot!" She stuck a tongue out and gently hit the side of her head. "I'm like, the sweet and beautiful Nekozawa Mayumi and I'm like Ohtori-sama's biggest fan ever and you know, I totally wanted to meet him ever since I was in junior high and I'm totally totally totally in love with-"

"I think that we've already established the fact that you are in love with him," Shishido cut off, a visible vein popping on his temple.

"Yes," the girl had a dreamy look, "I also think we should have a date this Saturday!"

All of the Regulars as well as their manager looked at this Mayumi girl as if she had just grown two heads. "EH?"

Mayumi childishly crossed her arm and frowned at the Regulars. They all looked like on the verge of throwing up, "I'm, like, so totally not kidding and everything! I'm like really serious and if Ohtori-sama wants to, we can go off to the sunset and ride ponies while we express our deep conne-"

"HELL NO!" Shishido yelled. He is _this_close to lunging for her throat for even suggesting of such a thing. What is this perverted woman planning to do to his kouhai?

"Now, now, Shishido… There is no need for vulgar language," Atobe smirked as he gestured at Ohtori Choutarou who hasn't even spoken at least one syllable since the entire ordeal. "Ore-sama believes that it is Ohtori's responsibility to answer this young woman himself."

"Thank you, Atobe –san," Choutarou replied and then turned to Mayumi with a resolved look. "I appreciate your feelings, Mayumi-san, but I do not think I am ready for a relationship yet."

The girl then flushed scarlet.

"Uh, I'm really sorry Mayumi-san," Choutarou continued consoling.

"B-B-But…" Mayumi sniffed, her mascara running.

Choutarou quickly tried to prevent the drama from happening. The last thing he wanted to be accused of was that he made a woman cry. "Ah! But don't worry! I'm sure you'll find someone else! Maybe we can be friends or…" He trailed off when he saw Mayumi's eyes brighten up considerably.

"Then can we have a date, Ohtori-sama? I really want to have a good discussion with you."" Mayumi looked too hopeful and Choutarou decided that he just gave the wrong impression. He nervously turned to Atobe. His buchou! Yes, if there was one person in the group who was experienced when it came to women, it would certainly be their captain! Unfortunately for him, Atobe just shrugged and all Choutarou could do was gape at him wordlessly.

"Look here pal, Choutarou would be- HMF!"

"Delighted to go on a date with you!" Oshitari finished for Shishido when Gakuto placed a hand around the other boy's mouth. Dates were so rare in the Regulars' schedules that he was absolutely ecstatic with the idea. After all, it would give him a good reason to spy on his teammate.

"FMMF! HMFFF!" Gakuto and Kabaji were trying their best to restrain the raging Shishido. The acrobatic tennis player also wanted to know what was going to happen if Choutarou and that insane girl would go on a date. He smiled as he envisioned an embarrassed Choutarou awkwardly holding out a hand for that Mayumi girl.

"Saturday, you say?" Atobe was rubbing his chin. "Very well, Ore-sama shall cancel our morning practice if Choutarou has to go on this appointment. Ito, take note of this."

"Of course, Atobe-san!" Himawari happily wrote something on a small notebook.

"YAY!"

"WHAT!" Shishido bit Gakuto's fingers and gave a look of pure disgust when he saw the girl looping her arms around Choutarou's neck.

* * *

The sound of silver cutleries reverberated throughout the entire room as Himawari happily chewed her food. "Hmf! Sho thwis is twaki steak?"

Her father immediately brightened up and sauntered gaily towards the dining table while he clapped his hands. "I am sooo glad you asked Papa-san! That Taki steak was imported directly from the Ryukyu Islands! The rich texture and exquisite taste of this meat goes quite well with a Malbec Meritage, but I don't think you can handle it yet. Anyway, before it is cooked, the raw steak is hung in a climate-controlled chamber to cause enzymatic changes in the meat and-"

The raven haired girl gave a muffled giggle.

Ito Tomohisa, believe it or not, was an underground bass guitarist for a heavy metal band some few years ago. Food was his real passion though and pretty soon, he was working on exclusive restaurants and hotels as a dedicated cook. Since then, he took on the challenge of becoming the head chef and manager of various Japanese restaurants, including the Miyako Hotel in Kyoto, which was famous for being one of the most expensive hotels in the country. His desire to express his love of food and constantly chase after exotic flavors in an environment that could offer the best cuisine with a fun, creative and approachable environment made him a sort of superstar in the Japanese culinary world. Currently he worked for _The Century_.

"I get it," Himawari said just to cut off her father's fervent speech. "Another serving please."

"Ooh! Buta-chan really has a fine appetite! Just like a mountain boar!"

"Papa!"

Himawari's owllike eyes rolled heavenwards. That was the reason why she had the nickname "Buta-chan." Really, it wasn't her fault that she was blessed with such an unladylike appetite. And it also wasn't her fault that her father's skills didn't pass on to her. The kitchen would burn to ashes the minutes she tries to cook even a simple dish! This is why her place in the kitchen was behind the refrigerator.

Was it such a crime that her cooking skills were only slightly better than horrible?

"So, Buta-chan," Tomohisa suddenly lurched forward, meeting his daughter's eyes. "What's your problem?"

"P-Problem?" Himawari gently laughed and put down her fork. "What are you talking about, Papa? I am fine and I certainly do not have any problems."

"But you look so out of it! Papa-san is very worried!"

Said with enough drama to warrant the role of a Broadway actress.

"Papa, you are being delusional. Did you take your medication?"

Said with enough defiance to make any deadpan snarker proud.

"You fell down the stairs the other day."

The raven haired girl pursed her lips. There was _that_.

Despite Tomohisa's outward foolishness and childlike tendencies to get into trouble, he was a very responsible father. He knew quite well how to read Himawari's moods and he would never be fooled by her acting. From time to time he may unobtrusively lend a hand and he was always open to giving advice, even if he was usually disappointed that his only daughter _doesn't_ come to him for help whenever she would probably need it. Therefore, it was only natural that he sensed that Himawari was troubled by something.

Meanwhile, Himawari felt her eyes dart back and forth-an exercise in futility, to be sure, as there was clearly no avenue of escaping her father's little interrogation. "I was just distracted at that time. And please, for the last time," she struggled to give her voice a bit more force. "I do not have any problems, okay? Sheesh."

"Is this about some boy? Oh my! Is your heart finally going on _Doki Doki_ Mode?" Tomohisa ignored Himawari and gushed in a way that most males would find too feminine. "My adorable daughter is all grown up! Hurrah for hormones!"

Much to Himawari's dismay, her father was also the kind of parent who drove everyone around him insane by going on at length about the wonderfulness of his one and only daughter. In fact, he encourages dating and finds it amusing to tease Himawari because of her lack of relationship with the opposite sex. More frightening is his visions of the future; he apparently wants to be a granddad already.

"I think you're insane."

"And methinks the lady doth protest too much."

Before Himawari could respond, the phone rang. Tomohisa got to his feet immediately and sprang animatedly towards the living room. "I'll get it!" He chirped brightly, although there was no reason for him to shout out his intentions because he was already holding the receiver. "Hello?" Himawari curiously watched as her father gave a frown before he lighted up again, all in the span of a second. This wasn't good. "OH! I see. Yes, yes. Of course! And on a Saturday too, how convenient! Buta-chan! Come here and talk to your boyfriend!"

The girl almost choked on her own saliva.

* * *

"This is flying bird to Kansai cupid. Over."

"…"

"Kansai cupid, I could not hear you. Over."

The tensai of the group gave a resigned sigh and snatched the walky-talky from his doubles partner, ignoring the latter's cries and whiny commands to give the device back to him. "Gakuto, you're making a fool out of yourself. I'm one meter away from you."

"Well," Gakuto puffed his chest out. "Codenames give off a feeling of stealth and sets the mood even more, you know!"

"I can't believe I was asleep when this happened!" The Sleeping Beauty of Hyoutei remarked as he took a _Pocky_stick. "Oh boy! Choutarou going on a date! You should've woken me up! Mou!"

"Senpai, you sleep like a log," Hiyoshi stated. Why was he here? Of course, gossip was beneath him but Oshitari insisted that if he took a shot of Choutarou's date, then maybe one of his photographs could finally be published in the campus newspaper.

Everyone wanted a piece of hot gossip. Why can't more people be interested in the current events of the world today, Hiyoshi silently bemoaned.

"Nothing is happening," Himawari stifled a yawn. Currently, they were hiding behind a bush and stalking Ohtori Choutarou. Truthfully, she woke up extra early that day to do some mental workout (to bring down Atobe hahahaha!), but instead she was dragged by Oshitari and his fellow paparazzi wannabes to spy on poor Choutarou.

Oshitari was the one at fault really. Telling her father that he was her boyfriend! How shameless!

Speaking of the tensai, he had a very bored look on his face as he watched over the targets. "They just walked around in this particular neighborhood. Nothing exciting even occurred. And here I was, expecting an embarrassing moment, or an accidental kiss or maybe a sexy moment that would later leave the both of them hot and bo-"

"Choutarou would not do that," Shishido mumbled when he heard Oshitari's scandalous remarks. Honestly, what would you expect from a guy who reportedly loved the _Twilight _series?

"Jealous that your wife's going to be taken by someone else?" Gakuto teased, knowing fairly well that he just hit a sensitive spot.

"CHOUTAROU IS NOT MY WIFE!"

"YEAH RIGHT!"

Himawari shot them a curious look. "Why do we even bother hiding here? You two are loud and a moving bush isn't really what I'd call inconspicuous. Look, Atobe-san is out in the open and Choutarou does not even notice him…"

True enough, their great captain was in plain view of the whole world. He did not like the idea of hiding behind foliages and such, because _of course _it would not be befitting for a person of his status. He wore sunglasses, but that did little to avoid his presence from being known since his trusted companion Kabaji stood right beside him.

"Yes, it is a bit odd that Choutarou did not notice him…" Oshitari's glasses gleamed as he watched Ohtori and Mayumi. "Probably, he is just too nervous to even notice his surroundings. First dates often do that to a person's nerves. His reaction, however, is not that surprising. After all, this is Choutarou we are talking about."

"You seem to know a lot about this dating thing…" The manager gave the tensai a suspicious look before he returned it with a devilish grin.

"Look! They're moving someplace else!" Jirou excitedly pointed out a finger at the two's direction. "Let's follow them!"

Hiyoshi muttered something under his breath as he followed the others and got on his feet. He did not get why the senpai-tachi are so enthusiastic about this date. It's not like it's gonna shake the whole foundation of tennis. Despite his unwillingness, he stayed with them though because let's face it, no one can resist a hot piece of gossip!

They struggled to trail the two teens as they passed by streets and narrow corners. After what felt like an hour, they finally stopped and went inside a building. The group all huddled together and hid behind a cardboard stand to avoid being seen.

Shishido almost knocked over the cardboard stand. "Where are they going?"

Himawari's eyes squinted. "I cannot see, Shishido-san!"

Jirou was casually standing on his tiptoes. "Mou, I don't understand why you're hiding behind that poor cardboard guy! Wouldn't it be a whole lot easier if you just stand up?"

"Love hotel."

All eyes turned to Oshitari.

"Love hotel," he coolly repeated again as he pushed his glasses up to the bridge of his nose. "The flashing enormous sign on the side of the building is already a dead giveaway. Choutarou and that girl are going inside a love hotel."

This time, Shishido really knocked over the cardboard stand.

"Well, what a surprise!" As usual, Atobe appeared out of nowhere with Kabaji in tow. Himawari secretly wondered if they had the power of teleportation. "Ore-sama believes that Choutarou should be given more credit; _this is certainly something_."

"Kami-sama, even Atobe is impressed!" Jirou looked as if he was waiting for a shaft of heavenly light to suddenly engulf them all.

"And the plot thickens," Oshitari dramatically announced as the atmosphere around them began to darken.

Shishido, meanwhile, looked like a total wreck. He was pacing back and forth, sweating bullets. "This is bad. What the hell did that woman do to force Choutarou to come with him? I bet she would make him do _this_ and _that.._."

"Your imagination knows no bounds," Oshitari quipped

"You should be happy that your doubles partner is finally turning to a man now!" Gakuto joked.

The capped boy's jaw dropped in shock. Why were they all so calm? Did they not even care about Choutarou's innocence? He craned his neck to the only person who might salvage his sanity.

"Well, this is a pretty interesting development," Himawari shrugged as she proceeded to give another one of her nauseatingly sweet smiles.

"Sick!" That was the only conclusion Shishido could come up with. "You are all sick!" Has the whole world gone mad? None of them were taking this seriously and even their buchou looked calm and collected as he inspected his fingernails. Kami-sama, who in the right mind would look at his manicure at a time like _thi_s?

"If it makes you feel any better, you could go inside and spy at them," Oshitari suggested.

"Right," Shishido was back to Earth now, firmly grasping his resolve. "Go there at that place. Right."

He stared at the group awkwardly.

"Ahem," he pretended to cough as he gave a meaningful look at Atobe.

Atobe didn't pretend to misunderstand Shishido's questioning look. He raised an eyebrow and waited for Shishido to speak.

* * *

**NOTES:**

-A _**love hotel**_ is a popular short-stay hotel in Japan and as the name suggests, it is designed exclusively for clients who are couples that want to have a private room all for themselves.

-If you haven't guessed already, Oshitari was the one who organized the "Stalk Choutarou!" campaign.

* * *

**AN: **I promise, I'm not writing an R-rated fic. This is like filler, and not a lot of things are going on in here but at least I gave you a dose of Himawari's father. There are some things in the next chapter that would be very important to the plot, so this mini arc is kinda important too I guess.

(Also, I already wrote the next two chapters but they're not yet polished and I'm too lazy desu~ /shot)

To all of those who are asking about Himawari's character, I guess you can say that she enjoys being praised and faking things. Honestly, there are many people like that. It made me laugh when a reader commented that Himawari's actions are too extreme, that she is forcing herself too much to be accepted. Well, you guys can do your own character study of my Himawari-chan. As long as she's not a Mary Sue (AAAAGHHH!), then it's fine with me.

Oh, and I wrote this chapter a long time and forgot to edit it. So if you spot some mistakes, feel free to point them out for me.

_~Invade my inbox's vital regions baby~_


	8. The Manager is a Tennis Prince

**"Managerial Mayhem"**

**SUMMARY: **Wanted! A manageress for Hyoutei's Tennis Club. Applicant? Ito Himawari, an ambitious girl who wants to be anything but normal. What to expect: Headaches, sore legs, angry fangirls, flying tennis balls, and maybe even… love?

**DISCLAIMER:** The Prince of Tennis was created by Konomi Takeshi. As usual, the characters in the franchise do not belong to me and belong to their respective owner(s). Aside from the characters I create, I do not mean to infringe on any current copyrights on the series. Thank you and have fun reading!

* * *

**CHAPTER 8: The Manager is a Tennis Prince**

Fully prepared to shout or else gripe at the janitor for his persistent interruptions of his quietly passed time that involved playing Solitaire on his cellphone, the manager of the love hotel '_Romantique_' was left wrong footed by the sight of a potential customer. He smiled broadly at once when he recovered, showing off his pearly whites.

"Welcome," he greeted enthusiastically. "How may I be of service?"

As discretely as the manager could, he studied the newcomer, a tall and well-built young man with an uncommon aquiline nose, and a mole below his right eye. He would've mistaken the guy for a foreigner-

"Ore-sama wishes to see the one in charge of this place."

- if not for his perfect Japanese.

"I'm the manager," he replied.

"You do not have a staff to man the front desk?" Atobe asked, looking almost appalled.

"Er," the manager straightened his tie. "His wife had gone into labor."

"And the manager is the only one available to help him relieve his duties?"

"We're short-handed at the moment," the manager quickly replied. "It's not always like this."

"You can't remain competitive if this is a regular occurrence."

The young man's looks are not the only thing worth noticing; his way of talking spoke volumes regarding his self-confidence. The manager grimaced and remembered his sorry younger years wherein he was an unpopular and awkward kid who couldn't even hold a girl's hand without his eyeballs rolling upwards.

Clearly the man before him wasn't anything like that.

The manager looked behind Atobe's shoulder and hoped to change the topic, "Ah yes, before anything, I did not fail to notice that you are by yourself."

"You can stop stating the obvious," Atobe drawled and crossed his arms.

The manager remained undaunted. "Just checking. Now, the list of rooms that-"

Before the manager could finish his sentence, Atobe snapped his fingers in one swift, fluid motion. As if on cue, the members of the Hyoutei Tennis Club appeared, sauntered over, and then stood behind their captain, forming a half-circle.

"I forgot," Atobe said with a laugh. "I do have company."

"One, two, three," the manager narrowed his eyes and counted the newcomers. "eight. Plus you, so there are nine. _Nine_."

"We want a room!" Shishido, always the impatient one, demanded loudly, making the manager almost fall over.

"We're part of a tennis club. And this is part of our training," Oshitari explained, though it did little to completely erase the look of confusion on the manager's face.

"You're all boys!" The manager exclaimed as he watched them give indifferent shrugs.

Well, there was this one young man who actually had the grace to seem embarrassed. He was the shortest of them all, a boy whose upper face was covered by a blue cap. The boy sensed his scrutiny and squirmed slightly-

"Wait," the manager said as he inspected the boy with the cap closer. "Aren't you a girl?"

"He just has feminine features, like my companion over here," Oshitari immediately replied as he motioned towards his tennis partner.

Gakuto looked at him in shock. "Hey!"

The manager touched the bill of the blue cap. "I'm pretty sure she's a gir-"

"What are you doing?" Himawari angrily said as she slapped the manager's hand away. This wasn't her idea, but there was a perverse sort of pleasure in crossdressing that she didn't know she could feel. Better go all out with her, er, impersonation. "Don't you know who I am? I am Echizen Ryoma, the prince of tennis!"

Muffled laughter could be heard.

"But your voice!"

"I'm undergoing puberty," Himawari said as she adjusted her cap. "Don't laugh at a boy's troubles!"

"Ore-sama thinks that's enough. Kabaji?"

"Usu."

The giant of Hyoutei towered over the manager and dragged him back to the desk.

"Am I being filmed?" The manager looked longingly at the tennis players back and forth, hoping to catch a glimpse of a hidden camera. "Cool prank, guys. As if anyone would believe that a training session would take place in a love hotel!"

Shishido facepalmed.

"What do you guys r-really want?" The manager barreled on, beads of sweat now on his forehead. He smelled something foul here. "It better be good or else I'll call the cops."

"Psst!" Jirou whispered to Atobe in a voice that defeats the purpose of his action. "This isn't working!"

"Let's just try the foolproof Atobe approach!" Gakuto said as he hopped over and massaged Atobe's shoulder, bringing comically a similar image of a personal trainer and a professional boxer. "I told you we should've gone for the first plan. That ought to take care of things!"

Atobe sighed and whipped out a golden card.

The manager gulped.

Jirou made a drumroll.

Everyone else watched in boredom.

"At what price can you be bought?"

* * *

"So this Mayumi girl, her family owns this place," Oshitari said. "Solves the mystery why she's so-"

"Clingy?"

"Love-depraved?"

"Starving for attention?"

"Slutty?"

"No Gakuto," Oshitari sharply retorted as he turned to Shishido. "And no foul language to describe a lady, Shishido. The word I was looking for was romantic. She's a romantic."

Gakuto snickered. "Sounds like your kind of girl then."

Hiyoshi looked over his shoulder and frowned deeply, almost as if it was his own way of saying to himself that he was not associated with these people. Valuing silence came with a price, unfortunately.

"Shishido-san, your cap…"

"Oh right!" Shishido turned to Himawari and instinctively backed away when he sensed an ominous aura surrounding the girl's outstretched hand. She blinked, then slowly gave a grand smile, her hair seemingly fanning unseen flames. Openmouthed, Shishido turned to his groupmates, but everyone else looked preoccupied with something.

"Is something the matter, Shishido-san?" Himawari asked, her owl-like eyes giving him the creeps.

"No, things are great," he gnashed his teeth and took back his beloved cap without making eye contact with the manager. It definitely wasn't his imagination this time, he was sure of it!

"Guys, guys! I think this is the room!" Jirou announced as the group skidded to a stop in front of a mahogany door with the number 309 etched on it. "Uh, so what happens now?"

"Allow me to handle this," Oshitari stepped forward and knocked on the door three times. "Room service!"

Anticipation filled the air as the group stood awkwardly, waiting for the door to open. Finally, for what seemed like an eternity, the door clicked and...

* * *

"No, no! Like, don't enter!"

Too late. Oshitari pushed open the door while Shishido rushed to get inside. Mayumi grabbed on to Shishido in an effort to push him away, but he was of course stronger than her so he naturally managed to break free of her grip.

The mini commotion distracted the group from the sweet melody that embraced the pink-colored room, the sound coming from the dexterous fingers dancing nimbly across black and white keys with practiced ease. The musician looked lost in his own world and for a moment everyone else's hearts fluttered in sync with the allegro beats. The sound that captured them was a stimulating, high octane movement that just won't stop, er… until-

"Erm, what exactly are we interrupting?"

- Gakuto decided to be the buzzkill.

* * *

A look of utter stupor claimed Shishido's face, and he looked back and forth between Choutarou and Mayumi. "You were teaching her how to play the piano?"

Mayumi pressed the binder full of music notes firmly to her chest and huffed. "Incorrect! I'm already a capable pianist. And for your information, Choutarou-kun was demonstrating a complex passage from the first movement of _Schumann's Piano Sonata No.2 in G Minor_! This piece is famous for its highly virtuosic demands, which was why I was so impressed to see Choutarou-kun perform it so splendidly at the _First West Kanto Piano Competition_. He might have gotten first prize, if only he wasn't disqualified."

"I didn't compete at the second day since we had summer training back then," Choutarou sheepishly explained while he rubbed the back of his head.

"It's supposed to be played very fast, but it takes a certain kind of control to avoid messing up the fingering." Mayumi sounded very passionate. "My instructor advised me against playing this piece, telling me that I'm better suited to a work by _Tchaikovsky_. My playing style is too haphazard, or so my instructor tells me. But then I heard Choutarou-kun play! I had to…I had to ask him how he did it!"

Gakuto blinked. "You know, you actually spoke normal human language."

Mayumi tilted her head sideways. "Excuse me?"

"How nice of you to seek Choutarou's counsel. However, there are questions from our little group that are needed to be answered," Atobe interrupted as he slammed his hand on the piano keys.

Hiyoshi, who was seating beside the piano, pressed his hands over his ears as he let out an undignified gasp. Fortunately, no one heard him since everyone else's attentions were centered on Atobe.

The Hyoutei king smiled. Perfect, the spotlight was on him!

"Well, for starters," Atobe languidly sat on the velvet chair stationed near the piano and crossed his legs. "Ore-sama wants to know why you chose a love hotel as the place of your little musical date with his kouhai."

All eyes turned to the girl in question.

"My mother told me that this establishment is a place where one can get intimately acquainted with another," Mayumi answered with utmost candor. "There was a music room in this place, from what I remembered. So I rented it just in case. It saves a lot of trouble of course."

"You've got to be kidding me!" Shishido stood up, his arms raised up in the air as if in utter defeat.

Oshitari faced Mayumi and prodded further, "You didn't want to meet at, say, a café?"

Mayumi shook her head. "That didn't cross my mind! This was the first place I thought of and it has a piano too!"

"But a love hotel?" Shishido questioned edgily.

Mayumi was mollified. "What's wrong with that?"

"Shishido-san, it's a very lovely place," Choutarou piped in, clearly and painfully unaware of the, erm, implications the place carried.

Oshitari nodded in approval. "I agree. This is one of those classier ones."

"Chou-kun, nyahaha! You don't know what people do in love hotels, do you?" Gakuto teased as he poked Choutarou's cheek.

"…getting sleepy…" Jirou looked _very _tired.

"Listen, it's not decent!" Shishido bristled in response.

"SILENCE!" Atobe stomped his foot on the floor. Instinctively the talkative members bowed their heads in submission as Atobe turned to Mayumi. He inspected her for a minute, and then assumed a position that's very familiar to the members of the Hyoutei team. "Aan~? I see. So this girl speaks the truth. Hmp. Misguided you may be, but my _Insight_ tells me that there is something more to your story."

Himawari, who had been silent all this time, placed a hand on Mayumi's own and gave her a small smile. "Anything you want to tell us?"

Mayumi flushed.

"Or do you want Ohtori-san to only know?"

"No, it's fine," she said, her gaze aimed at the piano on the room. "I just… I didn't know how to approach Choutarou-kun. I fell in love with his piano playing, but I'm not, I mean I'm not good… Good with words. I love music with all my heart, but it's not always there to help me express myself is it? So I watched some girls and tried to imitate them. How they walked, how they talked. I thought that if I imitated them, then I can talk to him and ask him myself how he played _Schumann_."

Himawari felt herself go cold. '_It must be the airconditioning_,' she thought. '_It's almost freezing here_.'

But she knew deep inside that it wasn't the AC that made her pulse quicken; it was Mayumi's confession that eerily got through her.

"I'm sorry, I just can't be confident if I'm myself," Mayumi wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her dress. She looked very vulnerable. "No one here probably understands."

Atobe exhaled sharply and before she could help herself, Himawari looked at him. For a split second, their eyes locked together, and the awkwardness of it all made a defenseless Himawari tear herself away from him and clutch her chest protectively.

'_What was that all about_?'

"You could've approached him and directly asked him about music, Nekozawa-san," Himawari quickly said as she tried to block Atobe's piercing blue eyes from her mind.

"But I can't! My mind tells me I'd be rejected if I didn't act the way I did!"

"Even if you say that, you did not have to act so lovestruck," Oshitari said sagely. "Er, you're not attracted to Choutarou-kun romantically, are you?"

Amusingly, Choutarou and Mayumi both shook their heads as if they practiced it.

"So, you totally don't, like, talk like this?" Gakuto asked.

"No. But it's how the popular girls from my school talk. It's not how one usually talks, but for teenage girls it might be normal…or not…?" She trails off when she sees looks of disbelief plastered all over her companions' faces. "I'm not really good with this, see?" Mayumi finally says and buries her head on her binder.

"I see. But one more thing," Oshitari pressed on, his eyes now with a glint of mischief. "When your mother- Kami-sama bless her- told you that this place is where people get intimately acquainted, what _exactly _was your interpretation of that? Nn?"

The team members all gape at Oshitari.

Mayumi looked up and innocently answered Oshitari's question. "Heart-to-heart conversations?"

Jirou promptly fell down the bed.

* * *

The group hurriedly got out of the love hotel sans Nekozawa Mayumi, who decided to stay since it was a family-owned establishment after all. Oshitari wanted to educate her about the 'realities of life' –or at least that's what he called it- and explain to her the nature of their family business, but thankfully changed his mind at the last minute.

"Maybe I can give her a heart-to-heart conversation in another place where we can get intimately acquainted with each other next time," he said as they left discretely from the back door of _Romantique_.

Himawari looked at the tensai with a horror-struck expression. It was disturbing how he _actually _sounded serious.

"Is Jirou going to be okay?" She asked, trying to distract herself.

"He does this all the time," Atobe said as he waved a hand dismissively. "Kabaji will take care of him."

"Usu," Kabaji answered as he effortlessly carried a sleeping Jirou.

And then a funny thing happened.

Atobe stopped and then abruptly pressed a hand on Himawari's shoulder. They were at the back, and the people ahead of them were weary and lost in each other's conversations that they they didn't bother to check if there was anyone who lagged behind.

("That would be their problem for being slow!" Shishido would reason.)

The sudden action made her jerk in response, but Atobe didn't seem to mind. She just wasn't ready enough to feel the sudden weight of his hand. She craned her neck slowly and tried to keep her facial expression neutral.

"What's wrong, Atobe-san?" Himawari asked in a nauseatingly sweet voice.

In truth, she was a bit alarmed, but of course she couldn't show her weak side to Atobe of all people, could she? Of course not! Nonetheless, she was felt a bit prepared for the Hyoutei King's reply, her own mind working a retort around the abruptness of the situation.

"Mayumi…"Atobe said. Himawari wasn't sure if he was whispering or speaking softly. "She's better than she thinks she is. And if someone asks Ore-sama… So are _you._"

The girl blinked a few times, as if she still couldn't quite believe what she'd just heard. "I'm not sure what you meant Atobe-san," she heard herself say. "But t-thank you?"

Damn it, did she stutter? She hoped she didn't but she heard her own voice and-

Oh blast it all. She _did_.

Atobe almost broke out into laughter. "Don't disappoint the tennis club."

Himawari licked her lips and placed her "good girl" mask back. Did Atobe pull her back just so he could say such a seemingly trivial thing to her? When would Atobe stop surprising her? She didn't know. Throwing those questions at the back of her mind, she dryly responded, "This is quite the way to motivate someone, Atobe-san."

Atobe released her and flicked his hair. "You can say whatever you want. You've actually had it easy, Ito. But this time, the club needs you to come up with an extensive training regimen for this week. There's a Regulars Selection, or haven't you been paying attention?"

"Did you think I forgot?" Himawari was pleased that there wasn't a biting edge to her tone.

"Ore-sama thinks you need constant reminders."

"I can do my job just fine, _Buchou_," she intoned as she tried to give another smile. "You didn't hire an imbecile."

"When did Ore-sama ever say that?"

Himawari couldn't help but make a face at that. "When you said that I needed constant reminders a second ago, Atobe-san? I'm not sure even sure why you need to tell me such a thing in this manner. Am I to assume that you're doing this because you want to tease me?"

Atobe raised a brow, his eyes twinkling in shrewd intelligence. "I suppose I am."

Himawari opened her mouth, swallowed convulsively and then stared at him, her eyes wide. So he was toying with her, trying to gauge her reactions towards the situation he created? What was wrong with him. And more importantly, what kind of effect did he have on her? Whatever it was, it was making her lose her equilibrium!

"Y-Y-You…" she stuttered, her arms hovering above her mechanically. To anyone's eyes, the girl looked scarily prepared to inflict physical harm on Atobe, but instinct luckily kicked in and Himawari pressed her hands together above her head.

"Aan~?"

"Ah, what a wonderful time to have afternoon stretches!" Himawari chirped as she bended sideways.

This time, Atobe really couldn't help but laugh. "You're really amusing."

* * *

"Where are Atobe-buchou and Ito?" Shishido asked, his voice trying to drown out the noise of the busy Tokyo streets.

The group came to a halt.

"They're behind Kabaji?" Gakuto wildly guessed as he ran towards the giant for closer inspection. "Meh, I guess not."

Oshitari flashed a paternal smile. Oh, this was interesting to him indeed. He had no doubt in his mind now that Atobe didn't want to let go of Himawari as the team manager. It was so obvious, but he wasn't sure if Atobe himself realized it. He never had a female friend before after all. The tensai coughed and then waited as his teammates turned to him.

"What is it, Oshitari-senpai?" Hiyoshi asked for all of them.

"Didn't they stay at the love hotel?"

Everyone stared at each other.

* * *

This marks the end of '_Managerial Mayhem_.' The next part would be a sort of bonus chapter, set a few months after the current timeline.

You can choose to not read if you so desire.

* * *

**OMAKE: **

_**AKA the epilogue that really isn't an epilogue at all**_

"Oh Kabaji, he would be so mad."

Hyoutei's stoic giant moved past his companion and stood in front of an intimidating-looking mahogany door. He turned, as if waiting for a go signal.

"No, I'll do it…" She took a deep breath and then rapped on the door. It flung open right away, and the girl jerked her head back, one hand raised in the air, as the door revealed Atobe Keigo's handsome visage. She hadn't really expected him to open it. He usually waited behind his desk, seated comfortably as he beckoned for people to come inside. Was she really that late?

"Ore-sama called you half an hour ago," Atobe drawled as he walked back to his desk. "What have you been doing? Taking a leisurely walk?"

"I came as fast as I could," she bit back, her breath still a bit choppy. "I was in the middle of a meeting."

"Heh, an _unofficial _meeting," Atobe's voice was laced with condescension. "We're graduating tomorrow and you're sharing information and video clips with the other managers of Kanto's tennis clubs. Prioritize, Himawari, prioritize."

The girl gave him a disbelieving look. "I told you a week ago that I would be meeting up with them. You, on the other hand, told me merely 30 minutes ago to meet up with you. I'm the one who traded my precious time to answer your 'mighty summon' and now _I'm _the one who should learn how to prioritize? Keigo, really?"

Atobe looked unmoved as he arranged his desk. "Hmf. Don't waste your breath. Besides you're getting a little too chummy with Seigaku's Inui; he's rubbing off on you."

"What are you talking about?"

"That Ito juice?" The Hyoutei king turned his chair towards the window and peeked through the velvet curtains before he whirled his chair around to look back at the girl. "Yes, please explain."

"I've been using that as a motivational drink for a half a year now!"

"Exactly, and before you know it, the next time Ore-sama sees you, you would already be spouting nonsense involving graphs and numbers."

Ito Himawari regarded the stubborn set of Atobe's shoulders, his mulish expression and the pugnacious angle of his jaw, and reminded herself to be irritated. Or at least to _look_ irritated. Surely the manager could manage that?

'_Oh, but he looks so good today_,' she thought to herself, aware that her attraction to him couldn't be denied any longer.

For some reason, Atobe was impeccably dressed that day. He wore a sleek dark blue business suit which she recognized to be an ensemble straight out of Armani's menswear collection for the next season. His hair was slicked back. The room was also heavy with the masculine and woodsy scent of Atobe's favorite fragrance.

What was the occasion?

As if he sensed her thoughts, Atobe gave a smug smirk and lifted a piece of paper for her to see, "Ore-sama was asked to give an opening speech for this year's U-17 training camp."

Now the girl looked surprised. "They give speeches there?"

"During our time, they didn't," he replied as he shrugged his shoulders. "The management changed hands this year. They wanted a show, an event that can be broadcasted on national television. And what better way than to have Ore-sama open for them, aan~?"

Himawari took the paper from Atobe –dammit, even his handwriting looked perfect!- and read silently. So this was his speech, huh?

"Ore-sama is supposed to be there by five o' clock."

The girl shot him a curious look. "Then why aren't you already headed there? It's almost four o'clock!" She glanced at the grandfather clock positioned on the corner of Atobe's study.

"Ore-sama was waiting for you."

"You can't blame everything that goes wrong with your life on me," she answered back crossly. She found that her mouth was twitching and made an effort to straighten her face.

"You chose Inui and the rest over Ore-sama…" Now Atobe sounded like a petulant child with his accusations.

Himawari wanted to pull out all of Atobe's glorious hair, but thankfully decided against it. She and Atobe weren't a couple yet, but they had a mutual understanding of each other's feelings. He wasn't desperately overt about his actions; there were no conspicuous hand holding or long loving gazes even when they were alone. Himawari was at least comforted by the knowledge that the Hyoutei King had a possessive streak.

There was no sense in pushing the current issue any further though. She took a deep breath and met his gaze. Using her most pleasant voice, she turned to him, "Alright, Atobe-_san_. Which of my services do you require?"

"Ore-sama wants you to do his necktie."

"Excuse me?" A vein inadvertently popped on Himawari's temple.

"Himawari," Atobe gestured to the manager and then pointed to a silver grey striped tie "My necktie."

"You really want me to tie that on you?"

"Very perceptive," Atobe remarked wryly as he went to grab the article of clothing himself and proceeded to hand it to the girl. "The clock is ticking, Himawari."

"Why of course, Atobe-_san_," she half-snarled as she seized the necktie from Atobe. "Makes one wonder why you didn't buy a clip-on if you didn't know how to tie one little necktie. Could've saved the both of us the trouble."

"What are you muttering?"

She looked up at him and fought the urge to turn scarlet. How could this gorgeous creature make her feel embarrassed and annoyed at the same time? They weren't even compatible- or so she sometimes told herself whenever she would have those moments of self-doubt and insecurity.

Atobe laughed when he saw the raven haired girl's spaced out expression. He then placed his hands on top of hers and gently pushed them down. She blinked as he looped the wide end of the tie above his neck and pulled it down, effortlessly making a Pratt knot.

"What do you think?" The heir to the Atobe Zaibatsu stood back and tilted his head inquiringly.

She only stared at him.

"Ore-sama looks ready to awe everyone, don't you agree?"

Himawari promptly shrieked.

"You can tie that damn necktie of yours! Don't bother me when I'm doing something, your Pompous Majesty!" She kicked his desk and threw a chair with frightening Amazonian strength. Atobe flinched and instinctively went over to Kabaji's side. The girl ended her fit of destruction when she gave him one last glare before she marched towards the door and loudly slammed it shut.

Atobe inspected his private study for a few seconds or so. He sighed and then looked at his friend, "Well, Ore-sama is whipped isn't he?"

Kabaji hid a ghost of a smile.

* * *

(x)(x)(x)

_HAPPY BIRTHDAY ERI-CHWAN! MY GIFT IN ADVANCE! BUT IRIE IS MINE BWAHAHAHA~_

(x) (x) (x)

* * *

- Schumann's Piano Sonata No. 2 in G-minor, Op. 22 was composed from 1831 to 1838. It was his last attempt at this genre, the other ones being the Piano Sonata in F minor (Op. 11) and the Piano Sonata in F minor (Op. 14). Among his Sonatas, this one is very frequently performed and recorded.

-First West Kanto Piano Competition is real. I made it up and searched it in Google then howled in surprise when I found out that there was an actual competition titled as such.

* * *

**AN: **A wild update appears! Wait, after three years? Whoa. Actually, this was the last chapter of '_Managerial Mayhem_' stored in my laptop and I planned to delete it because it's just junk now. And the writing was atrocious. Ugh. But at my friend's behest, I decided to upload this one because, well, the readers deserved more. Or so she reasoned. And she's right.

I deleted a few parts, and my good friend **MystiqueDragon **tidied some things up. The original chapter was waaay longer, with parts that included Reina and the Seigaku team. But, uh, I'm not going to continue writing this fic anyway so I had to cut those things up so things won't get confusing. This is the _FINAL CHAPTER _of '_Managerial Mayhem_' after all.

(On the plus side, I edited the chapter titles and made a cover pic. BECAUSE I CAN. Ha!)

I want to give a holla to **ideal fairytale** who provided a lot of good constructive criticism regarding my writing in her review. I think it's pretty obvious that I don't do a lot of edits or get betas now, huh? Anyway, thank you for pointing out my grammar mistakes. I'm not good with the tense thing. Whatever pops into my mind, I type it right away. So, um, yeah. Anyway, we're cool man. I would try to keep in mind your awesome comments the next time I try to write something!

I'm done with fanfiction for now though folks. :P


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